Team Spirit are the champions of The International 2026

As we reached the final day of The International 2026, one thing was on everyone’s mind; which team would lift the Aegis of Champions. After an amazing Group Stage, followed by an epic four days of playoffs, only the Grand Final remained to crown the team that would be victorious at TI 2026. TEAM VISION were already waiting for their challenger, having dominated the tournament. Their challenger came from the lower bracket finals, after Team Spirit continued an unbeaten lower bracket run, setting up a rematch against the team that sent them there.

With the stage set, VSN and Spirit went head-to-head in what would be the final series of TI 2026 – a best-of-five to decide who would be the champion.

Team Spirit make history at The International 2026

Both teams went into Game 1 with some interesting drafts, and, in the words of Clement “Puppey” Ivanov, “That’s what TI is for”. Alexandr “rue” Filin would be on Distruptor, a hero not seen at TI 2026 at all before this. At the same time, Volodymyr “No[o]ne” Minenko’s IO mid would be the first time we had seen him competitively play the Wisp. Unfortunately for VISION, they could not make their lineup work, as things finished with a rampage for Illya “Yatoro” Mulyarchuk’s Shadowfiend.

Game 2 was one of the best that we have seen this year at TI, with both teams playing out of their minds. Spirit was in control for most of the early to mid-game period, making it seem as though they were going to take another win. But, even with some masterclass plays from Yatoro, VSN’s lineup was too much to handle in the late game, as we now had a grand final on our hands with a 1-1 scoreline.

Edgar "9Class" Naltakian was unleashed in Game 3, getting to play one of his unconventional supports – as Marci got picked for the first time at TI 2026. However, that was not enough to take them to championship point. Spirit, on the other hand, had Denis "Larl" Sigitov itemise perfectly on a Nature’s Prophet, with an Aghanim’s Scepter to change the face of the game.

Spirit was now just one win away from becoming the champions of TI yet again. Being a grand final at TI, we could expect that no team would just lay down and accept defeat, let alone one that was unbeaten in a full series so far at this year’s iteration. VSN fought tooth and nail, with Alan "Satanic" Gallyamov’s Lifestealer getting a chance to shine and tie the series at 2-2.

With one final game to decide the victor of TI 2026, both teams were under immense pressure. VSN decided to draft a very controversial Juggernaut. The risk did not pay off after a strong early game. While there were glimmers of hope for VSN, it was all in vain, as Spirit walked away with the victory.

Team Spirit has now claimed THREE Aegis of Champions, with Magomed "Collapse" Khalilov and Yatoro becoming the first two players to become three-time winners.

As the fifteenth iteration of The International comes to an end, a champion is crowned and the Aegis is lifted. Although, unfortunately, we did not get a new hero reveal or an announcement of the location for next year’s event, we remember the amazing plays from the two weeks of Dota 2 action we saw in 2026. For the teams, they can now take a small break before the new season begins and we await what is to come.