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Eastern European Dota 2 powerhouse Team Spirit clinched the DreamHack DreamLeague Season 25 championship after a 3-2 victory over Western European rivals Tundra Esports in the grand final.
Originally set to wrap up on Sunday, March 2, the series was delayed due to an alleged DDoS attack targeting Spirit’s players during game four, forcing the tournament organisers to reschedule the final two matches for Tuesday, March 4.
With this victory, Spirit secured the grand prize of US$290,000 from the tournament’s US$1,000,000 prize pool, along with 4,620 ESL Pro Tour (EPT) points, bringing them closer to a direct invite for Riyadh Masters 2025.
This win also breaks a 10-month drought for Spirit, with their last major tournament victory dating back to the 1win Series Dota 2 Summer in June 2024.
Meanwhile, Tundra, who had been the most dominant Dota 2 team of early 2025 with consecutive wins at FISSURE PLAYGROUND #1 and BLAST Slam II, settled for second place, earning US$130,000 and 3,920 EPT points.
A big congratulations to our #DreamLeague Season 25 Champions, @TSpirit_Dota2!
With their first place finish they earn themselves $250,000!
pic.twitter.com/THvbJph3Pe
— ESL Dota2 (@ESLDota2) March 4, 2025
Spirit and Tundra battled through a highly competitive field of 16 teams across two group stages and the playoffs.
Tundra topped Group A in the first stage with a dominant 13-1 record, while Spirit led Group B at 12-2.
However, in Group Stage 2, it was PARIVISION who emerged as the top seed, sweeping their matches and finishing ahead of Tundra (11-5) and Spirit (9-7).
In the playoffs, Tundra claimed the first grand final spot by defeating PARIVISION 2-1 in the upper bracket final.
Spirit, starting in the lower bracket, had to grind their way through, pulling off a 2-1 reverse sweep against Chimera Esports before sweeping PARIVISION 2-0 to set up the championship showdown with Tundra.
The grand final opened with Spirit striking first, as Illya “Yatoro” Mulyarchuk’s Nature’s Prophet put on a dominant performance, securing 18 kills and 14 assists in just 39 minutes.
Spirit also showcased innovative drafting, with Magomed “Collapse” Khalilov’s offlane Faceless Void utilising the Time Zone Facet to amplify his team’s damage.
Tundra responded in game two, thanks to Neta “33” Shapira’s offlane Abaddon, who proved nearly unkillable in fights.
Alongside strong performances from Anton “dyrachyo” Shkredov’s Tiny and Bozhidar “bzm” Bogdanov’s Pangolier, Tundra evened the series.
The pivotal third game stretched over 66 minutes, with both teams trading blows before Spirit emerged victorious.
Despite early pressure from Tundra, Yatoro once again carried Spirit to victory, finishing with 16 kills and 13 assists.
Spirit were poised to close out the series in game four before disaster struck.
At the 18-minute mark, Mihail “Larl” Sviridov and Collapse disconnected due to a suspected DDoS attack.
Attempts to reconnect failed, and after nearly two hours of delays, tournament organisers ESL ruled for a full remake.
However, similar connectivity issues persisted for Spirit, forcing the match’s postponement.
When game four finally resumed two days later, Tundra capitalised on Spirit’s disruption, dominating them with a 29-8 kill lead in just 26 minutes to force a decisive game five.
However, any hopes of a close final match were dashed as Spirit stormed to a 36-7 victory in just 35 minutes, securing the DreamLeague Season 25 title in emphatic fashion.
With this victory, Spirit re-establishes themselves as a top contender in the competitive Dota 2 scene.
The team will now set their sights on upcoming events, including PGL Wallachia Season 3.
Meanwhile, Tundra, despite falling short, remains a formidable force and will look to bounce back in the coming tournaments.
We are your DREAMLEAGUE S25 CHAMPIONS
Thanks for watching
pic.twitter.com/lJteNbYp8E
— Team Spirit Dota 2 (@TSpirit_Dota2) March 4, 2025
