MENU
World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 represents one of the most important events in the esports world this year, hosting various tournaments for famous esports titles such as Dota 2 and CS:GO. This article refers only to the Dota 2 event and offers an overview of the participants, prizes and event format.
Similarly to all the other competitions that are part of the World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019, the Dota 2 one offers a total prize pool of $890.000, which is quite a massive amount. The event is scheduled to take place in China, in the middle of March and reunites 24 teams from all around the world in an unforgettable Dota 2 experience.
Participants
The grandeur of the World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 is given by the large number of participants. For several days, no less than 24 teams will be striving to deliver a great performance in their battle for the title. Bettors and spectators around the world should get ready for what promises to be a unique and engaging Dota 2 tournament.
Why unique? Well, unlike standard competitions, the World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 focuses on bringing in only “national” teams, meaning that all 5 players within a certain team must be of the same nationality, not a common thing among Dota 2 events.
As you can imagine, this decision leads to contradictory opinions. Some might be stating that the competition will be much more exciting to watch, as all the popular players will be competing for their team and for their country at the same time, while others might disagree because some of the strongest teams in this event have a 1 nationality roster already and the others barely stand a chance.
There are 4 teams that still need to be announced, as they are directly invited, but the rest of the participants at the World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 are the following:
- EHOME
- PotM Bottom
- TEAM TEAM
- Team Russia
- Nemiga Gaming
- The Final Tribe
- Deutschlando
- Australia
- Team Canarinho
- Gorillaz-Pride
- Omega Gaming
- Team Ukraine Yellow
- NoLifer5
- Orcus
- TNC Predator
- WarriorsGaming.Unity
- BOOM ID
- Veteran
- Leetpro Esports
As usual, some teams are stronger than the rest and the most important at the moment are the ones below:
- Team Russia
- TNC Predator
- The Final Tribe
- Australia
- Team Ukraine Yellow
- Team Canarinho
- Orcus
- EHOME
The teams mentioned above are either popular standard rosters (e.g. TC Predator), almost completely standard rosters (e.g. Team Russia, who is basically Virtus.pro but who has Afoninje instead of No[o]ne), or improvised rosters (such as Orcus or Australia) who still have highly-ranked players.
At the same event last year, Team Russia easily won the title and we can definitely expect a similar result this year as well. It is still to be determined who the 4 directly invited participants will be but all things considered, we can assume the first prize at the World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 will go to one of the 8 competitors listed above.
Comparing to last year’s edition, the upcoming event will be much more thrilling, as there are more reputable players competing for the title. However, it is still hard to believe that there is a team who can actually defeat Virtus.pro, simply because they are currently the strongest in the world.
Prizes
The total prize pool of $890.000 is quite massive but this doesn’t necessarily mean the top contestants will feel pressured in any way, as Dota 2 is the field with the best paid tournaments.
World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 is still considered, however, the second event after The International in terms of prize pool distribution. If we simply compare it to a Major where the winner gets $350.000, here, at the World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 the best team goes home with half a million dollars.
The total of $890.000 will be split among the greatest 8 teams as shown below:
- 1st place: $500.000
- 2nd place: $200.000
- 3rd place: $100.000
- 4th place: $50.000
- 5th – 8th place: $10.000
Contrary to what we’ve gotten used to at standard Dota 2 events so far, WESG gives no prize to the other 16 participants. Alisports, the organizer of this leading event, claim that they strongly need the competition organized this way, which is to be expected for all their upcoming tournaments.
Event format
Most probably, World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019 will be held in the popular Group Stage – Playoffs format but with the addition that the Group Stage will practically be split into 2 stages. The first one consists of having all teams split into 8 groups of 3, for the best 2 teams from each group to advance to the second phase. Here, the teams will be divided into 4 groups of 4 and the top 2 teams from each group will compete in the Playoffs. This stage consists of 4 Quarterfinals, 2 Semifinals, 1 3rd Place Match and 1 Grand Final.
Top contenders
We have selected below the strongest teams taking part at World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019. Betting on their defeat might not be a safe assumption, as their experience and power should get them to the Quarterfinals and even the Semifinals. This is unless they have to compete against each other sometime earlier in the tournament.
Team Russia
Team Russia might repeat their outstanding performance at the previous edition of WESG and win the title once again this year. Such a strong team with a stable and experienced roster is hard to be compared to other participants in this tournament, teams who are newly formed. Speaking of Team Russia’s strengths, 4 of its players are also part of Virtus.pro team, which has had some remarkable achievements lately, finishing 1st the Dota Pro Circuit and also managing to win The Kuala Lumpur Major this season.
Going into World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019, Team Russia will be the most feared opponent. There is a slight risk coming from its roster, as No[o]ne will be replaced by Afoninje based on the nationality criterion. He is a strong player though, a current member of the popular organization Gambit Esports. This being said, Solo and his team are surely expected to win the event.
TNC Predator
Possibly on the 2nd place in terms of potential and skill after Team Russia is TNC Predator, a top 6 team in the global rankings currently. They will be competing in their standard formation and having a quick look at their achievements such as winning the title at WESG in 2016, as well as at their solid roster, gets our hopes up for this upcoming tournament.
At the World Electronic Sports Games scheduled in March, we definitely expect TNC Predator to get a top 4 placement at least. Chances are this team can make it to the Grand Final if they won’t have to play against Virtus.pro in a decisive match during an earlier stage.
Other teams
Besides Team Russia and TNC Predator, there are other teams to be observed at the World Electronic Sports Games 2018-2019, namely Team Ukraine Yellow, Team Canarinho and EHOME. Moreover, Miracle competes for Orcus, meaning that they basically benefit from the skills of one of the greatest players worldwide. Don’t forget that [Team] Australia also has ana, the best player in the world at the moment and number one at The International 2018.
