Nigma Galaxy have the chance to finish as the top seed of Group B and advance directly to the Playoffs.
The Dota 2 action is heating up in the Dota 2 Esports World Cup (EWC) 2026 as day three of the Group Stage saw 
Nigma Galaxy produce the tournament's first big upset with a 2-0 sweep over 
Team Liquid. With that huge victory, Nigma Galaxy remain tied with 
Aurora Gaming for the lead of Group B and have a good chance to secure a direct berth to the Playoffs at the end of the Group Stage.
Meanwhile, Eastern European powerhouses 
PARIVISION and 
1w Team preserved their perfect Group Stage records so far and remain at the top of the table in Groups C and D, respectively. Over in Group A, 
Team Falcons have taken the lead after their two biggest competitors stumbled against their day three opponents.
Read on as break down all of the action in day three of the Dota 2 EWC Group Stage:
Falcons take over the lead in Group A as Xtreme, BetBoom stumble
The three-team deadlock for the lead of Group A was broken in day three, with Falcons taking over the lead with a 5-1 record off a 2-0 sweep over 
GamerLegion. Falcons' claim over the top spot of their group was helped along by 
Xtreme Gaming and 
BetBoom Team getting forced to 1-1 draws by the weaker teams of Group A.
Xtreme handily won the first game of their series against Poor Rangers but were outplayed by their opponents in a 39-minute loss in game two. Meanwhile, BetBoom were stomped by
Rune Eaters Esports in 38 minutes to open their own match, but managed to salvage a 1-1 draw by winning the 40-minute game two.
Falcons can extend their lead if they can take care of business against Poor Rangers in day four. Xtreme and BetBoom, who ended day three with 4-2 records apiece, will then face off in a match that will likely determine which team will finish second in Group A. GamerLegion and Rune Eaters are both on the bubble with 2-4 records apiece ahead of their pivotal matchup in day four, with a 2-0 victory for either squad likely guaranteeing them a spot in the Survival Stage.
Nigma Galaxy upset Liquid to remain tied with Aurora for the top spot in Group B
After a surprising 1-1 draw with group favourites Aurora in day two, Nigma Galaxy proved themselves to be real contenders as they soundly swept Liquid in their day three match. While all of Nigma Galaxy showcased excellent play in the series, 
Syed Sumail “SumaiL” Hassan was the clear star of the show. He put up 16 kills and 14 assists on two deaths as Shadow Fiend in game one then followed that up with 12 kills and 14 assists on just one death as Alchemist in game two.
The other day three matches in Group B, on the other hand, went largely as expected. Aurora dispatched 
L1GA TEAM in a 2-0 sweep to improve to a 5-1 record, resulting in a third straight day that they have been tied with Nigma Galaxy for the top spot of their group. Meanwhile, 
PlayTime kept 
Level UP winless and improved to a 4-2 record, which surprisingly puts them in third place above Liquid.
With Aurora and Nigma Galaxy having already played each other to a 1-1 draw, whoever can sweep their remaining two matches will finish as the top seed of Group B and advance directly to the Playoffs.
Things are looking good for Nigma Galaxy, as they will be facing a winless Level UP in day four and a beatable PlayTime in day five. Meanwhile, Aurora will take on PlayTime in day four and then Liquid in day five. That match against Liquid can be precarious for Aurora, as the former will be desperate to get some wins to at least advance to the Survival Stage.
PARIVISION preserve perfect record in Group C
While the other groups have largely been competitive, a clear hierarchy has emerged in Group C. Sitting comfortably at the top are PARIVISION, who extended their perfect start to the tournament to a clean 6-0 record by soundly sweeping 
REKONIX.
In second place are 
Team Spirit, who finished day three with a 5-1 record by sweeping 
Vici Gaming (VG). 
MOUZ remain in third place, though they didn't have the best showing in day three after getting forced to a 1-1 draw by 
Team Nemesis.
As things stand, PARIVISION are in prime position to secure a direct berth to the Playoffs. They still have to play MOUZ in day four and Spirit in day five, so a perfect run through the Group Stage is not necessarily a guarantee for them. While Spirit and MOUZ still have the potential to upset PARIVISION, they are likely headed to the Survival Stage.
VG have a tenuous hold over the fourth seed with a 2-4 record, with their next match being against their biggest threat in Nemesis. VG will need to score a sweep to guarantee themselves the group's third and last spot in the Survival Stage. Meanwhile, the best that REKONIX can hope for will be to exit the tournament with at least a couple of wins.
1w Team remain dominant in Group D
The top spot in Group D remained in the hands of 1w at the end of day three after they swept 
LGD Gaming. While they have a clean 6-0 record so far, 1w cannot rest on their laurels just yet as they still have to face their biggest challenger in the group. That would be none other than 
Team Yandex, who sit in second place after crushing 
Virtus.pro (VP) to improve to a 5-1 record.
1w and Yandex will clash in day five in a match that will likely decide which team from Group D will advance directly to the Playoffs. But before that, 1w will take on 
OG in day four while Yandex will match up against LGD.
OG bounced back from their 0-2 loss to LGD in day two by taking down 
IC x Insanity, who are the third team to still remain winless after three days of Group Stage action. Both OG and LGD round out the Top 4 spots in the group with 3-3 records apiece.
VP, who are in fourth place with a disappointing 1-5 record, can still make things exciting if day four's results go their way. VP need to sweep IC x Insanity and hope that OG get swept by 1w, which will give them both a 3-5 record ahead of their day five match. It remains to be seen if VP can bounce back from their poor start and advance to the Survival Stage.
Here are all the results for day three of the Dota 2 EWC Group Stage:
Group A
- Team Falcons 2-0 GamerLegion
- Xtreme Gaming 1-1 Poor Rangers
- BetBoom Team 1-1 Rune Eaters
Group B
- Nigma Galaxy 2-0 Team Liquid
- Aurora Gaming 2-0 L1GA TEAM
- PlayTime 2-0 Level UP
Group C
- Team Spirit 2-0 Vici Gaming
- MOUZ 1-1 Team Nemesis
- PARIVISION 2-0 REKONIX
Group D
- 1w Team 2-0 LGD Gaming
- Team Yandex 2-0 Virtus.pro
- OG 2-0 IC x Insanity
Here are the standings after day three of the Dota 2 EWC Group Stage:
Group A
- Team Falcons: 5-1
- BetBoom Team: 4-2
- Xtreme Gaming: 4-2
- GamerLegion: 2-4
- Rune Eaters: 2-4
- Poor Rangers: 1-5
Group B
- Aurora Gaming: 5-1
- Nigma Galaxy: 5-1
- PlayTime: 4-2
- Team Liquid: 3-3
- L1GA TEAM: 1-5
- Level UP: 0-6
Group C
- PARIVISION: 6-0
- Team Spirit: 5-1
- MOUZ: 4-2
- Vici Gaming: 2-4
- Team Nemesis: 1-5
- REKONIX: 0-6
Group D
- 1w Team: 6-0
- Team Yandex: 5-1
- LGD Gaming: 3-3
- OG: 3-3
- Virtus.pro: 1-5
- IC x Insanity: 0-6
What is the Dota 2 Esports World Cup?
The Dota 2 tournament at the Esports World Cup 2026 will be the last Tier 1 tournament of the 2025-2026 competitive Dota 2 season, before it culminates in The International 2026 in August. With many of the teams competing in the EWC also qualified for this year's Dota 2 world championship tournament, it should serve as a good preview for the battle for the Aegis of Champions next month.
The Dota 2 EWC features 24 of the best Dota 2 teams in the world and will take place from 7 to 19 July in the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles in Paris, France. The teams will be fighting for EWC glory and the lion's share of US$750,000, out of the tournament's US$25 million prize pool.
The Dota 2 EWC is split into three stages; the Group Stage from 7 to 12 July, the Survival Stage from 14 to 15 July, and the Playoffs from 16 to 19 July.
The Group Stage will see the 24 teams split into four groups of six teams each to play in a single round-robin with best-of-two matches. The top team from each group will advance directly to the Playoffs, the second to fourth-placed teams will move to the Survival Stage, while the two bottom finishers will be among the first to be eliminated.
The Survival Stage will feature the 12 teams that finished third to fourth in their respective groups during the Group Stage, with four spots in the Playoffs up for grabs in a single-elimination bracket with best-of-three matches. The Survival Stage will open with the third and fourth seeds from different groups taking each other on, with the winners moving on to face the second place teams for the four Playoff spots.
Finally, the Playoffs will be a single-elimination bracket featuring the four teams that finished as the top seeds of their groups in the Group Stage, as well as the four teams that made it out of the Survival Stage. All matches in the Playoffs will be a best-of-three except for the grand finals, which will be a full best-of-five series.
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