After securing perfect 3-0 records, Xtreme Gaming and Team Tidebound will face off for a direct spot in the Playoffs of The International 2025.

Dota 2’s The International (TI) 2025 continued today with Round 3 of the Group Stage, featuring more high-stakes matchups. While some teams are fighting to stay alive in the championship, others already have their sights set on the top spot. Chinese juggernauts Xtreme Gaming and Team Tidebound once again stole the spotlight, ending the second day of the Group Stage with spotless 3-0 records and remain the only teams undefeated.

In Round 1, teams laid off their foundation in the Group Stage with mainly expected wins and losses. Round 2 witnessed big upsets, particularly by Chinese teams against top contenders of the tournament. In Round 3, teams with a 2-0 series win-loss score were pitted against each other and the Chinese teams soared with dominant wins.

Xtreme defeated Team Falcons in one of the lengthiest and closest series so far, meanwhile, PARIVISION suffered their first map loss at the hands of Tidebound. Both winners now sit at a 3-0 score, meaning Xtreme and Tidebound are set to face off to determine the last undefeated team in the Group Stage. 

The Top 3 teams from the Group Stage will directly advance to the Playoffs of the championship, branded as The International itself. The winner between Xtreme and Tidebound is guaranteed to be the top seed, while the loser has a high chance of securing the second slot. 

The third and final slot will be wide open. PARIVISION and Falcons, now with a 2-1 score, join Team Spirit, Aurora Gaming, and Team Liquid as the teams with the most potential to grab the last Playoffs slot.

Xtreme dismantle Falcons’ relentless efforts

Xtreme versus Falcons was hands-down the most intense series of TI 2025 so far, and it may remain one of the most memorable throughout the event. The clash stretched to a full three-map series, clocking in at 200 minutes of packed gameplay. Topping it all off, Xtreme pulled off a clutch reverse sweep, gaining the 2-1 victory with their backs against the wall. 

In the series opener, Xtreme dominated the early game, leading by 19k net worth at the 35-minute mark. But soon after, Falcons grouped up behind Oliver “Skiter” Lepko’s Sven and started to find game-changing pickoffs. From that point on, Xtreme struggled to survive every major team fight, ultimately falling at 52 minutes.

Despite that early setback, Xtreme didn't lose their focus. In game two, Falcons secured several valuable skirmishes, but Xtreme consistently nullified their gains by answering back with kills of their own. Entering late game, the Chinese squad slowly tipped the scales in their favor–at least in terms of net worth. But once the game clock crossed the one-hour mark, it’s fair to say that gold lead mattered less.

The match eventually boiled down to a battle of initiations, sustain, and sheer endurance, with both teams fending off hordes of mega creeps at the same time. After a marathon of kills, buybacks, and Refreshers, Xtreme finally broke through, tying the series in 78 minutes.

The decider started off tight, with both teams trading blows. Falcons played aggressively and landed key kills, but Xtreme countered them each time with near-perfect responses. Wang “Ame” Chunyu’s Ursa stood out, capitalizing on tight windows of opportunity to turn seemingly lost fights and keep his team in contention. Eventually, Xtreme forced the GG call at the 69-minute mark, claiming their third consecutive series win in the TI 2025 Group Stage.

Tidebound hand PARIVISION their first defeat

Over in the other matchup, Tidebound clashed with PARIVISION, who had yet to lose a single map. But things quickly went south for the Eastern European powerhouse as they suffered a 0–2 sweep, sending them tumbling from the top spot in the Group Stage standings.

Throughout the series, Tidebound was in spectacular form. They were highly coordinated and disciplined, consistently outplaying PARIVISION’s movements. While Tidebound looked strong, PARIVISION, by contrast, appeared unusually shaky. 

PARIVISION is known for their innovative picks, which often work in their favor. However, this time, their experimental style became a double-edged sword. PARIVISION drafted a position 4 Magnus for Naltakyan “9Class” Edgar, which isn’t exactly a rare combination, but it’s very unpopular and has seen little success at TI. Dmitry “DM” Dorokhin also played Necrophos for the offlane, marking the hero’s first appearance in the tournament. It’s also a hero outside his usual pool, which may have affected their performance.

These draft issues became evident in the mid game, where Tidebound dominated with an overwhelming core lineup of Marci, Beastmaster, and Tinker. Although Alan “Satanic” Gallyamov’s Kunkka was able to farm and build up his items, PARIVISION lacked the team cohesion needed to withstand Tidebound’s pressure. Tidebound closed out the first map in 38 minutes.

In the second game, PARIVISION doubled down on their unconventional approach. We saw a carry Tinker on Satanic, which has been his signature surprise pick this tournament. It’s worth noting that Tinker is also a rare pick at TI, having only been picked three times by Satanic and once by Cheng “NothingToSay” Jin Xiang (in game one of this series). 9Class also played Zeus, another first appearance at the event. 

Compared to the first game, PARIVISION performed better and even took the lead in the mid game. However, their advantage was short-lived. Tidebound managed to turn the tide with a crucial counter-initiation in the late game and held strong through extended fights to eventually break through. The second game quickly snowballed in Tidebound's favor, ending at 49 minutes.

With Round 3 concluded, pairings for Round 4 (teams with 3-0 and 2-1 scores) are out:

  • Team Tidebound vs Xtreme Gaming
  • BetBoom Team vs Aurora Gaming
  • Team Spirit vs PARIVISION
  • Team Falcons vs Team Liquid

Dota 2 developer Valve introduced a new Swiss-format Group Stage this year, with the 16 participating teams competing in a five-round Swiss bracket with best-of-three matches. Teams will need to win four series in order to advance to the Playoffs while those that suffer four losses will be eliminated, with three teams advancing to the Playoffs and three others getting eliminated after the Group Stage. Teams will only face other squads that have the same record as them in each round.

The three teams that achieve 4-0 and 4-1 records after the Group Stage will be seeded directly to the Playoffs while the three squads that can only manage 0-4 and 1-4 standings will be eliminated. Meanwhile, the ten other teams with 3-2 and 2-3 records will have to fight it out in the Elimination Stage for the five remaining spots in the Playoffs.

For more information on the biggest Dota 2 tournament of the year, check out GosuGamers' guide to this year's Dota 2 world championship tournament and TI 2025 tournament tracker.

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