Gaimin Gladiators withdraw from The International 2025

In a completely unprecedented turn of events, Gaimin Gladiators became the first team ever to reject an invite to the Dota 2 pinnacle tournament, The International.

Gaimin Gladiators were one of the seven teams to receive a direct invite to The International 2025. Despite not having the greatest year in the team’s history, Gaimin made it to almost all LAN tournaments this season and stayed in the middle of the pack in terms of results. They attended the last two tournaments before TI, finishing in the top eight at the Esports World Cup in July. Earlier this Friday, August 22, they were eliminated from FISSURE Universe: Episode 6 in the group stage.

Countdown to Hamburg and The International is on,” posted Gaimin Gladiators on their social media accounts immediately after their exit from the Fissure tourney. “Time to regroup and work hard for September!”

A few hours later, Valve announced Gaimin’s sudden decision to pull out from The International 2025.

“On Sunday, the Gaimin Gladiators organisation informed us that they were withdrawing their team from The International. After talking with the invited players directly, we learned they were unable to come to an agreement with their organisation that would allow them to participate. We are now in the process of finding a suitable replacement team.”

According to Nick Cuccovillo, Gaimin Gladiators co-founder, “there are internal matters between the players and the organisation that made it impossible“ for Gaimin to move forward with the roster. Cuccovillo cited legal aspects that prevent him from sharing the whole story.

Community reactions to Gaimin Gladiators' withdrawal from TI

While none of the GG players have made an official statement yet, their fellow players and friends in the scene took to social media to express their perplexity at learning the news.

“Players work not only this whole year to participate in TI but dedicate their lives to play this tournament, very sorry for my friends on the team,” posted Andreas "Cr1t-" Nielsen, who will be competing for a shot at the Aegis this year with Team Falcons.

Team Liquid’s coach, William "Blitz" Lee, called the decision “the most shocking thing I’ve ever seen in Dota” and “a massive red flag.”

Gaimin Gladiators' withdrawal from TI 2025 is a first in the tournament's 14-year history. The decision is even more shocking if we take into consideration that the team placed second at the previous edition.

Most likely, their replacement will be announced in the coming days, so stay tuned with rdy.gg for further updates on the situation. The International 2025 is set to kick off on the 4th of September in Hamburg, Germany.