All-Filipino Dota 2 squad OG Esports qualifies for The International 2026

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

With only one slot allocated by Valve Corp. in the Southeast Asia region for The International, the all-Filipino OG Esports squad made sure that the final Dota 2 slot would belong to them.

On June 23, 2026, OG Esports officially returned to Dota 2’s biggest tournament, ending a four-year TI drought after claiming the championship during the SEA Region Qualifier.

OG Esports took down Team Grind Back during the championship stage, 3-1, capping an incredible playoff run with a 9-2 record from the upper bracket quarterfinals to the grand finals.

Despite minor roster changes, including replacing Nikko “Force” Bilocura with Marc Polo Luis “Raven” Fausto as their new offlaner, OG Esports still thrived and showed no signs of chemistry issues.

Team Grind Back put an early scare into OG Esports, scoring a massive upset win in Game 1 to take a momentum-boosting 1-0 series lead.

However, the lineup of John Anthony “Natsumi” Vargas, Erin Jasper “Yopaj” Ferrer, Timothy “Tims” Randrup, Rolen Andre Gabriel “Skem” Ong, and Raven regrouped in Game 2 to equalize the series at 1-all.

Just when Grind Back thought that its late-game pace would work against the aggressive OG Esports, the all-Filipino team turned the tide with a masterclass in Game 3 en route to another win and a series lead.

With the SEA Region Qualifier win, OG Esports will fly to Shanghai, China, on Aug. 13, 2026, for the group stage, while the main event will kick off on Aug. 20, 2026.

In retrospect, OG Esports shocked the whole esports world after moving from Europe to Southeast Asia on Nov. 8, 2025.

Through the acquisition of Team Aureus, OG Esports was able to secure the services of the five Filipino Dota 2 players.

“Dota has always had a home in the Philippines. Now, it will become our home too,” OG Esports posted on its official Facebook page.

Tagged as the best Dota 2 organization after becoming the first team to win back-to-back The International titles in 2018 and 2019, OG Esports will look to bring a more systematic approach to the all-Filipino squad.

“An entirely new chapter is ahead of us. SEA teams have always been feared and respected, but they never really achieved the results that were expected from them. There’s always been tremendous potential,” said Sebastian “Ceb” Debs, OG’s former coach and offlaner.