Following the conclusion of five regional closed qualifiers, nine teams have secured a place at the upcoming ESL One Birmingham 2026 Dota 2 event.
Qualifiers for Western Europe, Eastern Europe, the Americas, and Southeast Asia took place between January 16th and 20th, with several notable names making it to the main event.
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Eight teams competed in the European, South American, and Southeast Asian qualifiers, while four teams faced off in North America. The North American qualifier saw GamerLegion emerge victorious after defeating Rottweilas LATAM 3-2 in a hotly contested best-of-five.
The South American qualifier was a more one-sided affair, with Peru Rejects taking victory with a 3-0 sweep of HEROIC in the Grand Final. The Peruvian side only conceded a single map en route to earning its place in the main event.
For Western Europe, four of the eight teams from the closed qualifier would advance to Birmingham’s bp pulse LIVE arena. The International 2025 champions, Team Falcons, defeated Zero Tenacity and NAVI to continue its strong run of form, while Nigma Galaxy navigated its way through the lower bracket to qualify.
The pair of Aurora Gaming and BetBoom Team made their way through the Eastern European qualifier. BetBoom remained unbeaten throughout, defeating L1GA TEAM, 1w Team, and Inner Circle Esports 2-0. Aurora Gaming dropped into the lower bracket following a defeat to Inner Circle Esports, before avenging its earlier loss in the lower bracket final to book its place in another high-profile LAN.
After dropping into the lower bracket after defeat in its opening match, REKONIX ran the lower bracket gauntlet, scoring four wins to earn a place in the Grand Final alongside Execration. REKONIX continued its momentum, scoring a 3-1 win to earn the sole qualification spot on offer.
ESL One Birmingham 2026 Teams
With four of the five closed qualifiers complete, 15 of the 16 teams competing at ESL One Birmingham 2026 are set. The confirmed list of teams is as follows:
- Tema Yandex
- Team Spirit
- Parivision
- Xtreme Gaming
- OG Esports
- Tundra Esports
- Team Falcons
- Virtus.pro
- MOUZ
- Nigma Galaxy
- BetBoom Team
- Aurora Gaming
- REKONIX
- Gamer Legion
- Peru Rejects
- TBD
The final place will be decided through ESL Challenger China, an eight-team event taking place from January 30th to February 1st. Featuring the likes of Yakult Brothers and Vici Gaming, teams will compete for a place in Birmingham along with a share of the $142,000 (~£105,658) prize pool.
Source: https://esportsinsider.com/2026/01/esl-one-birmingham-2026-teams
