After a four-day riveting regional final, WYLDE has emerged as the victors. For their efforts, they will be representing the EU in the global finals.
WYLDE made their way to the regional finals through the open qualifiers. Victus was the second finalist from the 15 other teams that participated in that event.
Four teams fought for the top spot in the regional finals. Although two were there through the qualifiers, Rouge and Heroic were invited by the organizers.
It was a perfect run for WYLDE, as they blitzed through their opponents. They defeated Heroic and Victus in the semi-finals and final, respectively, to reach the grand final.
In the best-of-5 grand final series, they beat Rogue 3-1. Rogue had previously exacted revenge against Victus, who were responsible for sending them to the lower bracket, in the lower bracket final to secure a grand final ticket. Although they came close to forcing a fifth game, they lost Skyscraper 8-7.
WYLDE won $250,000 from the $500,000 prize pool. Recall that the regional finals are strictly for charity. Hence, their winnings have been donated to UNICEF.
Spacestation Gaming were the favorites with esports betting sites to win the top spot in North America and they delivered. Spacestation, alongside Parabellum Esports, were the two invited teams while Leftovers and Gaimin Gladiators Academy came into the regional finals through the open qualifier.
In the semi-finals, Spacestation lost the first map against Parabellum. Throughout the competition, that was the only loss they suffered. Despite dropping that map, Spacestation turned things around and won the series. In the upper bracket final, they dominated Leftovers and ended the series with a sweep.
After an impressive lower bracket run, Parabellum was in the grand final to face Spacestation once again. This time, they failed to win a single Rainbow 6 map in the best-of-5 series.
At the time of publishing, the charities each team played for were unknown. Nonetheless, Spacestation walked away with the lion’s share of the $500,000 prize pool, winning $250,000 for their yet-to-be-revealed charity.
MIBR and FaZe Clan were the two invited teams in South America, and they showed their dominance. Both teams won their semi-final matchups and faced off for the first time in the upper bracket final.
MIBR registered their second sweep in the LATAM regional finals over FaZe, thereby sending them to the lower bracket final. After a comfortable 2-0 victory over Escolinha do bubu, FaZe was ready to exact revenge on MIBR in the grand final.
Although they played all five maps before a winner was decided, the winner of each map leading up to the decider had comfortable wins. In the end, a 7-2 victory in Kafe Dostoyevsky secured MIBR’s participation in the global finals.
Just as in the case of NA, the charities are yet to be revealed. However, MIBR also won $250,000 for finishing first place.
Eight teams are scheduled to play in the LAN event that will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from August 4 to August 8. The remaining five teams that will be participating are yet to be revealed.
Four teams will be invited, and the final participant will come from the Saudi eLeague. GWB has a history of inviting big names to their event. With that in mind, the global finals promise to be a cracker.
Teams will be competing for a piece of the $2 million prize pool. In this event, the winners will keep their winnings.
]]>
TEAM UNKNOWN vs INFINITY ESPORTS DOTA 2 BETTING & MATCH DETAILS |
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|---|---|
| Event: | OGA DPC: South American Closed Qualifier |
| Dota 2 odds: | UNK $1.53 at GG Bet | INF $2.38 at GG Bet |
| When: | January 7, 2021 at 15:00 PET |
| Watch Live: | Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/ogadotapit) |
It’s been just over a month since these teams last clashed on the battlefield at Realms Collide 2, when they parted ways with a 1-1 draw. That result, however, does not hold any value for our prediction considering Infinity Esports have since rebuilt their roster with Danilo “Arms” Silva and four semi-pro players.
Infinity have yet to play a single official match with their new roster, which is not optimal, however, they’re facing a squad that hasn’t done too well of late. Arms is also a very experienced Dota 2 player, which should help the underdogs have a tactical edge over their opponents, making them a solid longshot bet at the offered odds.
INCUBUS CLUB vs LATAM DEFENDERS DOTA 2 BETTING & MATCH DETAILS |
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|---|---|
| Event: | OGA DPC: South American Closed Qualifier |
| Dota 2 odds: | Incubus $1.81 at GG Bet | DEF $1.92 at GG Bet |
| When: | January 7, 2021 at 15:00 PET |
| Watch Live: | Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/ogadotapit) |
Like many other LATAM Dota2 teams, Incubus Club decided to freshen up their roster ahead of the 2021 season. With new faces on the team, it��s difficult to figure out how strong this team really is, but we can say for certain that they did not have enough time to gel together ahead of this bout.
Unlike Incubus, Latam Defenders should look much more cohesive since they haven��t made any changes to their squad. What��s more, they are in great form and hold a 4-1 record across the last 16 days.
This is a best-of-one (Bo1) fixture, so anything can happen, but we don’t believe Defenders should be priced as high as they are.
TEAM UNKNOWN vs EGOBOYS DOTA 2 BETTING & MATCH DETAILS |
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|---|---|
| Event: | OGA DPC: South American Closed Qualifier |
| Dota 2 odds: | UNK $1.66 at GG Bet | EGB $2.11 at GG Bet |
| When: | January 7, 2021 at 16:30 PET |
| Watch Live: | Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/ogadotapit) |
Team Unknown will clash with EgoBoys shortly after their bout with Infinity Esports in what should be a fairly easy win for Nicol��s “Wij” Moreno and his crew. Unknown have won all but two of their eight meetings with EgoBoys throughout 2020, with the only exceptions being one stalemate and one 0-2 loss.
Their most recent bout happened just over three weeks ago, when Unknown swept EgoBoys 2-0 and ended the series with a combined kill score of 72-31. EgoBoys shortly after decided to rebuild their squad, which raises the same concerns we have with Incubus, on top of the fact they haven��t signed any big names.
Unless EgoBoys overperform, we don’t see how they can cause any serious issues to Unknown, who seem poised to secure their first head-to-head victory of 2021. Check out the top esports betting sites for to find the best Dota 2 odds.
Activision have just dropped the multiplayer Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War trailer. The company released the first trailer after a video was leaked of the multiplayer game.
The 3:17 official trailer gives players a taste of what they can expect when the game goes live on November 13. As seen in the clip, Cold War promises excellent graphics and tons of action.
From battling on ships in the Atlantic ocean, through the deserts in Angola, to combat in Miami��s streets, there��s a lot to look forward to in the coming launch.
The League of Legends World Championships is quickly approaching as teams make their way to Shanghai for their 14-day quarantine period ahead of the first games. The campaign is set to start on September 25, with teams finding out this week who they��ll be up against.
However, this year some familiar faces will be missing. Cloud9 have had a dismal year and didn��t make the cut, and neither did the 2019 champions, FunPlus Phoenix. Other notable teams that��ll be missing include Invictus Gaming and T1.
There��ll also be no Vietnamese groups this year as the country is experiencing severe travel restrictions due to COVID-19. As a result, Riot Games have shuffled the qualifiers slightly and reduced the amount of participating teams to 22.
You can expect to see some new and old faces with those that have made it for the group stage and the play-ins. DAMWON Gaming, DRX, Fnatic, Gen.G, and Top Esport are just a few of the 12 seeded into the group stage, while the play-ins include Rainbow7, MAD Lions, and Team Liquid among the 10.
The Cairo-based esports team Anubis have seeded $300,000 from an ecommerce group. Last month the organization raised $100,000, bringing the total funding in investments to $450,000.
Anubis have rosters for LoL, Counter-Strike, and Crossfire, and they plan to expand by adding more players to compete in different games. Youssef Mohsen, the organization’s founder, says that they��re planning to use the investment funds to bring in new players, international coaches and launch an apparel line.
Anubis have achieved more than 20 titles since launching in 2015. They are the first African team to reach a high level since becoming the regional champions in Crossfire and participating in the world championship playoffs.
Alex ��ALEX�� McMeekin is the first player to sign to Cloud9 since the organization announced plans to rebuild their CS: GO roster. The British Counter-Strike player has reportedly penned a three-year deal worth US $1.65 million.
The new GM, Henry “HenryG” Greer, announced the news via Twitter with details about the philosophy he��d like to bring to the team. There��s no news yet about any other signings, but we at eSportsBet.com will keep you up to date with any developments.
Rodrigo ��Lelis�� Santos, the Brazilian offlaner that plays for Quincy Crew, has won a Mercedes-Benz and a share of $28,000 after winning the ESL One Thailand 2020 MVP award.
Lelis played a crucial role in Quincy Crew taking the title at ESL One Thailand 2020 Americas. He is part of the team currently participating at BTS Pro Series Season 3, where they��ll look to build on their six-win streak in Dota 2 tournaments.
This is the second time that Lelis was up for the Mercedes-Benz MVP award. He was also nominate for the top prize at ESL One Birmingham, where Lu ��Somnus�� Yao won.
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University have won the inaugural UniSport Australia Esports Championships. RMIT topped the charts with 24 points, finishing six points ahead of Monash University.
The competition came to an end after seven weeks where 15 university teams participated in Rocket League, FIFA 20, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournaments. Despite not winning any individual titles, RMIT played well across the board and racked up enough points to put them ahead.
]]>Luke Zelon, the former Director of Partnerships at Team SoloMid, has launched his new venture, NXT UP Esports. It��s a recreational esports platform with a focus on the youth and young players. The biggest aim of NXT UP is to help youngsters develop and improve their lives in-game and out-of-game.
Zelon believes that his experiences as a child, working at TSM, and playing recreational sports will help the platform flourish. He knows how to combine a traditional sports structure with professional esports team practices.
The company’s inaugural Fall League opened on September 9, for players aged 13-15. The young gamers can enter provided they��re ranked Iron, Bronze, or Silver in League of Legends. The funds from registration will go towards a scholarship program, which will help college students fund their studies towards an industry career.
Vici Gaming have parted ways with their head coach, Kim ��kkOma�� Jeong-gyun. Kim decided to return home due to personal reasons and family commitments, as his wife is pregnant. They were in discussion to re-sign in 2021, but they didn��t come to an agreement because of the uncertainty surrounding his family commitments.
The coach parted ways on amicable terms, so there��s a chance that he��ll join them once again. Before joining Vici Gaming, kkOma was crucial in leading his previous team, T1, to three world titles in his seven years with them. Since joining VC, he��s helped the team climb the ladder from a lower ranking to a mid-level.
In their third Mobile Esports Open, RedBull is focusing on PUBG Mobile. Fortunately for South African players, the local RedBull branch has opened sign-ups for the National Qualifier. Registration is free, and there should be four players per team.
Qualifiers start on September 26 and conclude with the final on the 27th. The winning squad will have a chance to compete in the 2021 World Finals in Turkey.
The Ukrainian Professional Esports Association will hold a conference to outline the strategies and vision for the next five years. The news comes after the Ukrainian government decided to recognize esports as an official sporting code.
Various groups and lobbyists, including the Ukrainian Esports Federation, who submitted an application to the Ministry of Youth and Sports, catapulted the decision. Oleksandr Borniakov, the Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation, commented that it��s a historic move for the country, as esports have become a fundamental aspect of the modern digital culture.
Earlier this year, a group including Oleksandr Kokhanovsky bought the Dnipro Hotel in the country��s capital city, Kyiv. They aim to turn it into a venue designed and equipped to host esports competitions and events. If they��re successful, it��ll be the first such location in the world. It will have training and stadium areas, a players�� lounge, and rooms for professionals.
Ahead of the League of Legends 2020 World Championship, regional teams are on their way to Shanghai. The first team to arrive is Rainbow7, from the Latin America League, where they departed from Mexico together.
The LoL Worlds will commence on September 25, but teams will start trickling in now. Everyone that enters must abide by protocols and stay in quarantine for 14 days upon landing.
ESL Australia and NetEase have joined forces and released Marvel Super War Esports, exclusive to the Oceania region. It��s the first time Marvel has explored a MOBA platform, and it looks to be successful.
They have hope that the release will spark more interest in esports across Oceania countries. It��s also an attempt to fill mobile esports ecosystem gaps so that players have an opportunity to play, regardless of the device they use.
ESL Australia will also host two online tournaments to get gamers excited.
]]>The Division of Gaming Enforcement in New Jersey has approved online sportsbooks to accept wagers for the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Legend Series. Gambling enthusiasts are allowed to place pre-match and in-play single outcome wagers, such as overall and match-winner.
This is the second time the DGE has approved an esports event for wagering. The first time was last year for the LoL World Championship finals. The director of the New Jersey DGE stated that esports has emerged as a cultural and economic force, quickly matching the same level as traditional sports.
He also said that New Jersey must accommodate gambling fans and how they interact with their favorite team and events. The addition of esports gives sportsbook users a wider variety of betting options and makes the Garden State a more attractive contender for investors that drive the industry.
Asia
DAMWON Gaming��s key player, Jang ��Nuguri�� Ha-gwon, will arrive late to the League of Legends World Championship. The young player had to undergo surgery for lung disease, pneumothorax. He is doing well and is set to be discharged from the hospital on September 13.
The rest of the DAMWON Gaming team is set to arrive in Shanghai on September 11, with Nuguri joining on the 18th. All players that attend the event must stay in quarantine for 14 days upon their arrival. Nuguri��s late departure means that he��ll join the Championship a week late.
The LoL Worlds starts September 25, and the DAMWON team are the favorites to win the series. Despite Juguri arriving late, he should be able to play with his teammates in time.
The African Cyber Gaming League announced that the Toyota Esports Challenge would commence and be played on WRC 9. The series has a $3,600 (equivalent to R60,000) sponsorship from Toyota South Africa.
Submissions open on September 14 for the first stage, with new ones and added restrictions released each week afterward. The final showdown will be on October 14. The competition is open to players on Xbox One, PC, and PlayStation 4, and they can submit multiple submissions every week. However, the best time will be placed on the leaderboard.
All submissions must be uploaded to the ACGL website to stand a chance at being crowned the champion.
The United Kingdom and Ireland regional ESL Premiership have announced a new partnership deal with Puntt for the 2020 Autumn season. The new partnership provides a different way for the community to interact with the ESL Premiership teams and players.
ESL also announced the extension of their deal with Stakester after the Spring 2020 season. Razor is also one of the latest sponsors to join the regional ESL Premiership.
Unfortunately, the ESL One Rio 2020 CS: GO Major has been canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. ESL and it��s sponsor, Valve, worked tirelessly through various alternative options for the event to occur, but decided that cancellation would be the best for all involved.
The Oceanic Esports Dota 2 League playoff week is around the halfway mark, and the Power of Friendship team struggles to find their feet. The squad is battling a 1-15 win-loss record, and it doesn��t seem they can break through. Power of Friendship is bringing a good game, but are stumped at almost every match.
]]>Similarly to MiBR, who moved to Serbia to become a part of the European CS:GO scene, as well as FURIA and TeamOne, who both moved their rosters to North America, paiN Gaming have decided to leave the South American region in search of a tougher challenge.
The announcement surfaced this Friday when it was unveiled paiN’s CS:GO roster has landed in Las Vegas, Nevada and will now remain in North America for the foreseeable future. The prominent Brazilian esports organisation already had plans to move their roster up north at the start of the year, but their plans fell through due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which made travelling outside of Brazil impossible.
After spending six months in LATAM region, paiN were exploring their options to move to NA again in June, but got hit with another setback as Paulo “land1n” Felipe was unable to secure a travel visa. This eventually resulted in paiN benching the 26-year-old AWPer and instead enlisted the services of ex-New England Whalers player Rafael “?saffee?” Costa.
Even after securing visas for all of their players, paiN had significant struggles with solving transportation and housing problems on top of spending two weeks in quarantine in Mexico, as revealed by the team’s in-game leader Vinicios “?PKL?” Coelho.
“16 days in an apartment in Mexico, one cancelled flight, two cancelled cars, one denied home application, one cancelled home, and we did it,” said PKL.
Despite all their struggles, however, paiN have now officially joined the NA CS:GO scene where they will hone their skills against some of the strongest teams in the world. As of today, paiN are not yet confirmed to attend any of the upcoming NA tournaments.
PaiN Gaming will now look to emulate their dominant domestic results, which saw them win six domestic titles in 2019. Even though PKL and co. did not win a single event in 2020 besides two qualifiers in WESG 2019 Latin America: Brazil Open Qualifier and Americas Minor Championship – Rio 2020: South American Open Qualifier #1, the Brazilian squad still managed a third-place finish at Gamers Club Redragon Challenge as well as runner-up finishes at ESL One: Road to Rio – South America Tiebreaker and Gamers Club Masters V.
Most recently, paiN were seen competing at the WESG 2019 Latin America: Brazil Closed Qualifier, where they beat Redemption POA (2-0) and Yeah Gaming (2-1) en route to the grand finals, where they had to admit defeat to RED Canids (1-2), who reverse-swept them with 16-10 on Train and Vertigo.
As of the most recent CS:GO global ranking update (Monday, August 31), paiN are ranked as eighth-best Brazilian team and hold onto the 118th place in the world.
]]>River Plate first dipped their toes into the competitive gaming scene in 2016 when they signed FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer (PES) player Franco “franoplay” Colagrossi. In December 2019, the club expanded further into the esports world with the announcement of a League of Legends team that would compete in Liga Latinoam��rica’s (LLA) Liga Master Flow (LMF).
Even though River Plate’s LoL squad failed to see much success in their inaugural LMF split – they finished ninth and had to fight through the promotion series to retain their place – the Argentine football giants deemed their esports project a success and decided to go even further with the acquisition of a CS:GO roster.
River Plate had their eyes on creating a CS:GO team midway through the year when they reached out to Ezequiel “?KUN?” Palmero, but the negotiations didn’t bear any fruit until this Thursday when he decided to continue his esports career at “La Banda” after Coscu Army benched him.
Joining KUN in River Plate’s CS:GO roster are his former teammates Mariano “?MRN1?” Santa Maria and Ariel “?arieldidi?” Ramirez, with whom he played at Sinisters. Unproven talents Thomas “?christopher?” Navales and Guido “?guidimon?” Romano round out the five-man squad.
“It’s a pleasure to be the captain and IGL of this team. I will give my 100% and lead River Plate in CS:GO where they deserve,” said KUN.
Taking over as head coach is former Counter-Strike player, manager and analyst Hugo “?rew4z?” C��ceres, who returns to the sidelines for the first time since leaving his post at Miami Flamingos in 2017.
River Plate will compete in the Aorus League, Argentina Game Show, La Liga Pro Trust, FiRe League and several other South American CS:GO competitions.
It has been rumoured that Boca Juniors are also looking to expand into pro gaming by creating FIFA, LoL and CS:GO teams, so it might not be long before one of football’s greatest rivalries extends into the esports realm.
]]>DETONA Gaming and Isurus Gaming will duke it out for a ticket to ESL Pro League Season 12 this Thursday in a best-of-five (Bo5) series at the South American qualifiers.
Since the turn of the year, DETONA have made a few drastic roster changes. In January, the Brazilian esports organisation signed Filipe “fP1” de Caires, who ended up leaving the team shortly after DETONA parted ways with Matheus “prt” Scuvero in March. Fast forward to May, DETONA lost two more core members in Matheus “Tuurtle” Anhaia and in-game leader Andr�� “tiburci0” Rossetto, which ushered a roster rebuild early in June with the signing of Counter-Strike veteran Renato “nak” Nakano and two unproven talents in Guilherme “piriaz1n” Barbosa and Romeu “zevy” Rocco.
Since putting together their new CS:GO roster, DETONA have played six matches at the C-Tier Gamers Club Redragon Challenge. There, nak and co. lost the opening match against BOOM Esports but bounced back with two solid performances against Keyd Stars (2-1) and Cream Real Betis Latam (2-0). Despite their relative success in the group stage and a clean sweep against W7M Gaming (2-0) in the upper bracket quarter-finals, DETONA lost to Isurus (0-2) and Sharks Esports (1-2) to end the event in fifth-sixth place.
DETONA played well considering their roster was assembled less than two weeks ago. There are still a few issues, namely Lucas “Lucaozy” Neves’ inconsistent performances, but piriaz1n and zevy have shown a lot of promise.
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Isurus Gaming are priced as favourites for this match, which is not surprising when you compare their form to that of DETONA. That might have something to do with roster stability, as the Argentine side have made only one change to their active squad since January.
Since Isurus acquired Caike “caike” Costa at the start of June, they have played four games and won three of them. They topped their group at the Redragon Challenge, defeating GAN$O$ (2-0) and Soberano Team (2-0), and followed that up with playoff wins against RED Canids (2-0), DETONA (2-0) and BOOM Esports (2-0) in the upper bracket finals. They fell just short in the grand finals, however, as BOOM Esports got the better of them with a narrow 3-2 win.
Although Isurus hold a poor 42.9% win rate across the last three months, their performances have significantly improved of late. Since the start of April, they have played 14 games, won six, drawn four and lost four. Only BOOM Esports and RED Canids have beaten Isurus in that stretch.
Isurus Gaming should be confident after downing DETONA last Friday in the upper bracket semi-finals at the Redragon Challenge. The match, however, was not as one-sided as the final result would appear to suggest.
Isurus won the first map, Mirage, with a surprisingly strong performance on CT-side, which earned them a 12-3 lead by the end of the first half. Although DETONA put up solid resistance after the swap, Isurus were too far ahead and did enough to close out a 16-8 win.
The second map, Train, was extremely close. DETONA had a good opportunity to win that map and even held a 13-12 lead at one stage, but they failed to deliver on CT-side as Isurus sealed the series with a 16-14 win.
Lucaozy and zevy both played well with 1.21 and 1.10 ratings respectively, but poor performances from nak (0.76) and piriaz1n (0.82) made it hard for DETONA to remain competitive.
Isurus seem like the better team here, but they did not show enough in that series for us to consider the -1.5 handicap. DETONA are not as bad as the odds suggest and should at least keep this one close.
The first round of the Movistar Liga Pro Gaming Season 4 playoffs will see NoPing e-sports and Infinity Esports duke it out for a spot in the second round of the winners’ bracket.
NoPing enter the playoffs following a perfect run through the group stage, where they defeated 0-900, SandBlood and SadBoys without dropping a single map. The numbers only tell part of the story, however, as Thiago “Thiolicor” Cordeiro and his crew faced only amateur teams.
Although NoPing are not quite the strongest South American Dota2 team, they’re up there with the best. The Brazilians have made some noise on the big stage since the turn of the year, most notably when they finished as runners-up at ESL One Los Angeles 2020 – Online: South America. In that run they defeated beastcoast, FURIA and Thunder Predator in the group stage without losing a single map, but beastcoast had their revenge with a dominant 3-1 victory in the finals.
Since then, NoPing won the Betsafe Invitational and made a deep run at Realms Collide, where they lost to beastcoast and Infamous en route to fourth place. Thiolicor and co. have finished outside the top four in only two of their nine events this year, with their worst being a seventh-eighth result at the StarLadder ImbaTV Dota 2 Minor in March.
NoPing acquired two ex-paiN Gaming players, Thiolicor and Adriano de Paula “4dr” Machado, in February as replacements for Pedro “mini” Rezende and Caio “Nuages” Oliveira. They have not made another roster change since.
SEE ALSO: BEST DOTA2 BETTING SITES
Infinity Esports finished the group stage with a 1-2-0 record. Eduardo “RayKill” Nu?ez and co. defeated Real Deal E-Sports (2-0) in their opening match, then drew with both Incubus Gaming (1-1) and Thunder Predator (1-1).
While their record is not as encouraging as that of NoPing, it would be fair to say that Infinity were placed in a much tougher group. Nonetheless, their draw with Incubus is a big concern, especially since the Peruvian minnows managed to win the second map in just over 15 minutes.
Infinity also attended Realms Collide a few weeks ago, but they did not make it far. RayKill and his crew lost to beastcoast (1-2) in opening round and again to Real Deal (0-1) in the lower bracket to wind up tied for last place in a field of eight teams.
Infinity assembled their roster in April, when they signed Jeremy “Jeimari” Ruiz Aguinaga, Benjam��n “Benjaz” Lanao Barrios, Junior Reyes “Yadomi” Rimari, Bernardo “Berna” Rocca Alarc��n and RayKill. Last Tuesday, the team parted ways with Berna and replaced him with Juan “Atun” Ochoa, who =served as a stand-in player against Thunder Predator in the group stage and left a positive mark with his signature hero, Alchemist.
NoPing e-sports are clearly the more successful of these two teams so far in 2020. The comparison is a little unfair, however, since Infinity Esports just recently assembled their roster.
While Infinity failed to impress in the Movistar LPG group stage and showed nothing special at Realms Collide, that does not necessarily mean they are a bad team. All members besides Raykill have experience playing at some of the strongest Dota2 teams in their region, while Benjaz alone has over six years of experience under his belt.
Infinity might not become one of the top South American teams anytime soon, but they have the potential to make some noise in their region. They forced Thunder Predator and beastcoast to three-map series, so there is no reason to believe they can’t put up a strong resistance against NoPing and take it all the way.
Thunder Predator ($1.43) enter their WESG LatAM campaign fresh off a title-winning run at the Aorus League Dota 2 Regionals – Christmas Edition. Frank “Frank” Arias and co. put up a show and took home the top prize of US $3,000, losing only one round in the process.
Prior to the Aorus League, TP also won Movistar Liga Pro Gaming Season 1 in November and X-Bet.co Rampage Series #6 in December. As it stands now, TP are unbeaten in their last 10 fixtures and hold an impressive 19-2 record in their last 21 games, which dates back to late-October when they entered the Movistar Liga Pro.
The say Infamous ($2.54) have seen better days would be an understatement. Shortly after their historic run to a seventh-eighth finish at The International 2019, the Peruvian team’s entire roster of Hector “K1” Antonio Rodriguez, Jean Pierre “Chris Luck” Gonzales, Adrian “Wisper” Cespedes Dobles, Elvis “Scofield” De la Cruz Pe?a and Steven “Stinger” Vargas left for Team Anvorgesa and in early-October joined with beastcoast.
Since the departure of their TI roster, INF have struggled to achieve any notable results. Most recently, they had a rather lacklustre performance at X-Bet.co Rampage Series #6, where they finished third behind paiN Gaming and Thunder Predator.
TP and INF have met four times since mid-October. One ended in a stalemate, two ended in INF��s favour, while the most recent meeting at the Movistar Liga Pro in early December saw TP claim a clean sweep.
While INF come off as a stronger team when you compare records, their recent form is poor. TP, meanwhile, have lost only two fixtures since October 23, 2019. INF might be able to produce some resistance and win a map, but TP should come out ahead.
Prediction: Thunder Predator to win – $1.43 at GG Bet
Team Unknown ($1.26) made quite a few changes to their roster towards the end of the last year and enter 2020 hoping to make waves in the LATAM Dota 2 esports scene.
Back in September 2019, UNK parted ways with Carlos “Tiares” Huamani, Sebastian “Robo-Z” Cerralta, Thomas “Valquiria” Jaulis Romero and Junior Reyes “Yadomi” Rimari. Towards the end of the year, UNK also saw the departure of Bernando “Berna” Rocca, Juan “Atun” Ochoa and Christian “Madara” Kimura.
Due to the organization’s decision to remove Madara in late December, UNK now field a four-man roster and will have to act quickly to find a stand-in for the WESG LatAM. That won’t do them any good in terms of team synergy, while finding a high-quality replacement this close to the event will prove tricky.
While UNK’s core remains intact, we don’t see that as a massive positive given their iffy performances last month. At X-Bet.co Rampage Series #6 they got off to a flying start but crashed out of the tournament in the playoffs, where they lost to TP and INF. At the Aorus League Dota 2 Regionals – Christmas Edition, which took place a couple of days later, UNK failed to win more than one match and finished in fifth-eighth place.
UNK are priced as heavy favourites to defeat Incubus Gaming ($3.38), whose roster consists of Cristian “Pamplona” Fernandez, Pokorn, Bryan Freddy “SmAsH” Machaca Si?a, Jesus “Ztok” Carhuaricra and former INF member K1, who alone adds a lot of quality to the team.
UNK have too many issues on their hands for us to believe they can justify their low odds. An incomplete roster and poor form suggest they will struggle here, which is why we predict an upset win for K1 and his team.
Prediction: Incubus Gaming to win – $3.38 at GG Bet
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