Team Spirit Claims 3rd Dota 2 International Title in Shanghai

Team Spirit defeated Team Vision 3-2 at Shanghai's Oriental Sports Center on Sunday to win The International 2026 and become the first team to claim the Dota 2 tournament's championship three times.

The 15th edition of The International, also known as TI2026, brought 16 professional teams to Shanghai from August 13. The eight-team main event ran from August 20 to 23. Chinese teams Xtreme Gaming, Vici Gaming and Team Resilience competed but did not reach the final eight.

The best-of-five final went to a deciding game before Team Spirit secured the Aegis of Champions. The victory added a third title to the team's record.

The tournament was paired with cultural programs across Shanghai. On July 11, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra performed music from Dota 2 at Jaguar Shanghai Symphony Hall, bringing the game's soundtrack into a concert setting.

Chinese visual elements also shaped the main event. Gold thread, fabric textures and traditional patterns appeared in the stage design, team emblems, venue decorations and broadcast graphics. The opening ceremony used a golden-goddess figure to connect imagery from the game with choreography and competition scenes.

Tang Xiaohong, a representative practitioner of Suzhou embroidery, worked with a team of embroiderers for more than four months to create an embroidered Aegis of Champions about 1 meter in diameter. Organizers said the original piece will be kept as a memento of the event.

The tournament's presence stretched beyond the arena. Oriental Sports Center Metro Station was decorated with embroidery-inspired graphics, while Dota 2 installations and pop-up displays appeared at locations including the Oriental Pearl Tower, Wujiaochang, Bailian ZX, Qiantan and several shopping centers in Pudong and downtown Shanghai.

A citywide fan map linked the arena with commercial districts and public cultural spaces. Character displays, replicas of the Aegis and photo installations were set up at venues including Wujiaochang, Qiantan Taikoo Li, Shanghai Expo Culture Park and Super Brand Mall.

Some shopping centers offered discounts tied to electronic tickets. Shanghai Super Brand Mall and L+SNOW Indoor Skiing Theme Resort also hosted secondary viewing venues for fans who could not enter the main arena.

Shanghai first hosted The International in 2019. With the tournament returning seven years later, the city became the only host outside Seattle to stage it more than once, according to the organizers.Ticket buyers as of June 25 came from 73 countries and regions.

Shanghai issued measures in March to support its gaming and esports industries, including attracting leading international competitions and linking events with culture, commerce, tourism, sports and exhibitions. TI2026 put that approach into practice through the tournament, concert, traditional craft collaborations and citywide fan activities.