The ESL Pro Tour Leaderboard is the new, official Dota 2 teams leaderboard to refer to when we discuss the pro scene. This came after the abolishing of Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) Leaderboard, which was Valve’s former method of ranking teams.
While the EPT Leaderboard is never explicitly stated to be Valve’s official leaderboard, it is still reliable, considering the number of major tournaments under the ESL Pro Tour this season.
Dota 2 Leaderboard (Image credit: ESL)
How does EPT Leaderboard work as a Dota 2 leaderboard?
The EPT Leaderboard shows the scoreboard of teams that earn points based on their performance in ESL-covered tournaments. In 2024, this included DreamLeague S21-23, ESL One Kuala Lumpur 2023, and ESL One Birmingham 2024.
The point distribution for each finish differs based on the tournament. For instance, placing first at ESL One Birmingham 2024 rewarded 6400 points, but it was 4200 points at DreamLeague S22. Similar to past Dota 2 leaderboards, there are points deduction rules that penalize teams that change players outside of the “transfer window” and multiple-player movement.
Top eight teams on Dota 2 leaderboards
With the EPT 2024 season coming to an end at the DreamLeague S23, the top eight teams on ESL’s Dota 2 Leaderboard advance to the Riyadh Masters 2024 as direct invites.
The rankings are as follows:
ESL Pro Tour Dota 2 Leaderboard (Image credit: ESL)
Team Falcons
The king of the hill is Team Falcons, hailing from the Middle Eastern and Africa (MENA) region. While the MENA representative is a new name in competitive Dota 2, they sport a roster of seasoned and talented players. There are TI11 champs, Oliver “skiter” Lepko and Jingjun “Sneyking” Wu, who are playing alongside three other prodigies, such as Andreas “Cr1t-” Nielsen, Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf and Stanislav “Malr1ne” Potorak. For winning three consecutive tournaments, Team Falcons is the undisputed strongest team on the Dota 2 leaderboard.
BetBoom Team
Following closely behind is their Eastern European rival, BetBoom Team. Also led by a former TI Champ, Alexander “TORONTOTOKYO” Khertek, this group of misfits can give Falcons a run for their money.
Gaimin Gladiators
Gaimin Gladiators, despite their downhill performance during the early parts of the season, regained their footing at last during the DreamLeague S23. This allowed them to claim a close third-place finish despite their downs.
Xtreme Gaming
Xtreme Gaming is the Chinese representative on ESL’s Dota 2 Leaderboard at fourth place. While not as high as the big three, this team has proved themselves to be noteworthy opponents when they even defeated Falcons in other third-party tournaments, such as Elite League 2024.
Bottom Half on Dota 2 Leaderboard
Filling the bottom half are Tundra Esports and Team Liquid, both of whom performed reasonably well. They had their moments in one or two tournaments but ultimately didn’t seem like consistent candidates on the leaderboard. Team OG, on the other hand, joined late into the ESL Dota 2 Leaderboard but clutched a massive victory at ESL One Birmingham 2024 to earn themselves seventh.
And at the bottom of the barrel is Team Spirit, the two-time TI Champion. With lack lustre results throughout the EPT, it was a surprise that they narrowly secured eighth, the last place eligible for Riyadh Masters 2024.
Is the EPT Leaderboard the best Dota 2 Leaderboard?
It goes without saying that ESL truly stepped up for the sake of Dota 2 Esports when Valve abolished its own DPC. The EPT is a well-paced series of tournaments that each had phenomenal production quality (expected of ESL) and great Dota 2 action.
If there’s one minor flaw that ESL might want to look into the EPT’s score distribution is its top-heavy point weightage. Tournament placements below the top six earn less than 1000 points, which may have caused the large disparity in points at the eighth place.
Historically, eighth place in Dota 2 Leaderboards has been heavily contested, with 2-3 teams having the same number of points. This makes for an interesting narrative of how close the teams were to qualifying for the TI Championship, or in this case, the Riyadh Masters.
Riyadh Masters 2024 (Image credit: Esports World Cup)
Does the EPT Dota 2 Leaderboard affects TI13 invites?
While not mentioned, the EPT Leaderboard is indirectly a reliable source of reference on the top powerhouses for the 2024 season. Hence, it won’t be surprising that Valve reviewed the EPT Leaderboard when handing out the International 2024 direct invites to Team Falcons, BetBoom Team, Gaimin Gladiators, Xtreme Gaming, Team Liquid, and Team Spirit.
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