Huligani are the first team eliminated from The International 2026

OG and Huligani opened day three of The International 2026 group stage facing the grim reality that one of them would be sent home early. They both reached this point after losing three consecutive series in the Swiss system.

Game one featured a very aggressive OG who ran a Witch Doctor- Keeper of the Light duo support with a Storm Spirit mid lane to start early rotations and suffocate Huligani on the map.

Despite Huligani getting a few spectacular counter-initiations in the mid stage of the game, they couldn’t break through OG’s defensive itemisation. The Southeast Asian squad had four Aeon Disks and two Linken’s Spheres among their heroes to survive every key engagement. Even with several overextensions and sloppy mistakes, OG took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series.

Game two: Huligani fight back

Huligani refused to roll over and evened the series by mimicking OG’s early aggression. Their early rotations trio was Dark Willow-Elder Titan-Invoker. However, OG were ready with an elusive Ember Spirit mid and early saves in the side lanes via Largo and Undying, messing up with Huligani’s coordination.

But Huligani’s simple, well-rounded game plan ultimately proved more sustainable. With a better scaling Drow Ranger in the backline, Huligani took full control past the 20-minute mark, forcing a decisive third game.

Game three: Look at it go

OG learned their lesson from game two’s lack of initiation. Therefore, they picked an offlane Enigma alongside the disruptive duo of Witch Doctor and Hoodwink, and absolutely crushed the laning phase. At just eight minutes in, the scoreboard was 7-0 in favour of OG and by the 15-minute mark they already had a 6k gold lead.

They kept charging with Kez in the front line, transitioned smoothly into the mid-game and never looked back. Huligani are the first team eliminated from TI 2026, perhaps not at all a surprising outcome for a team that just made their debut at the pinnacle Dota 2 event in Shanghai, China.

Day three of TI 2026 group stage will crush more dreams, with two more elimination series on the schedule, but who will join them in the 1-3 bracket is still to be decided.