Both squads were knocked out by Eastern European teams who came from the Western European open qualifiers.
Notable Western European organisations 
MOUZ and 
Team Secret will both miss The International (TI) 2025, the annual Dota 2 world championship, after a short-lived run in the tournament's Western European regional qualifier.
Both teams were among the four direct invites to the closed qualifier of the region and were placed in the quarterfinal rounds by default. However, they were eliminated quickly in consecutive defeats, mainly at the hands of open qualifier teams who came from Eastern Europe.
MOUZ’s run started with a 0-2 loss against 
1win, which knocked them down to the lower bracket. There, they were paired against an open qualifier team of Eastern Europe origin in 
Virtus.pro. An unorthodox Huskar position 5 pick by MOUZ unfolded into a quick 25-minute loss in the opening match. And although the second game was a more hopeful battle, MOUZ eventually succumbed.
Many viewers eyed the German organisation in the Road to TI 2025, courtesy of its noteworthy lineup. MOUZ is led by veteran captain and three-time Major champion, 
Melchior “Seleri” Hillenkamp, accompanied by notable players of other regions including Southeast Asian stalwarts 
Abed Azel “Abed” Yusop and 
Nicholas “zeal” Lim.
The roster however didn’t translate into results. Following MOUZ’s poor debut a month ago, the team once again fell short in the TI qualifier.
Even more surprising than their rapid elimination was Secret’s early exit. The team carries significant weight in terms of popularity and legacy, with TI1 winner and renowned captain 
Clement “Puppey” Ivanov at the helm.
Once a consistent threat in Tier 1 competitions, Secret has declined since its runner-up finish at TI 2022. Since then, the team has struggled to recapture its former glory and is now even failing to qualify for major tournaments.
In the TI 2025 Western European qualifier, Secret were one of the dark horses. Despite subpar recent results, fans had hoped that they could pull upsets due to the organisation’s reputation. However, Secret started on the wrong foot, losing to regional rivals 
OG in the opening round.
Dropping to the lower bracket, Secret suffered another 0-2 defeat, this time at the hands of an open qualifier team with little-known players, 
Yellow Submarine. And just like that, one of the biggest names in the region is out of the qualifier–marking the organisation’s third consecutive year absent from the annual championship.
The fight for The International continues
With MOUZ and Team Secret out of the pool, only eight contenders remain: 1win, 
Natus Vincere (NAVI) Junior, OG, 
Nigma Galaxy, Virtus.pro, Yellow Submarine, 
AVULUS, and 
4Pirates. It is worth noting that only three out of eight teams in the Western European qualifier that remain are from the region, while the rest are Eastern European teams that signed up via the open qualifiers.
Ultimately, only the best two teams of this region will make it into the year’s iteration of TI. The winners will join eight directly-invited teams as well as the winners of the other regional qualifiers.
This year's list of direct invites to TI include defending TI champions 
Team Liquid, 
Tundra Esports, 
Team Falcons, and 
Gaimin Gladiators from Western Europe; 
PARIVISION, 
BetBoom Team, and 
Team Spirit from Eastern Europe; as well as 
All Gamers Global (formerly 
Team Tidebound) from China.
Meanwhile, the regional qualifier winners so far include Eastern European qualifier winner 
Aurora Gaming, South American qualifier winner 
HEROIC, Chinese regional qualifier winner 
Xtreme Gaming, and North American regional qualifier winner 
Wildcard.
This year's TI regional qualifiers will take place across two weeks of competition from 4 to 17 June, with three batches of two qualifiers each being played at a time. The final set of regional qualifiers will be for Southeast Asia and Western Europe, which will be hosted from 13 to 17 June, and with two teams from each qualifier advancing to this year's Dota 2 world championship tournament.
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