Dota 2 DreamLeague Season Seven Is A Triumph For Team Liquid

Ian John

Published: Jul 24, 2017 - Last Updated: Jul 26, 2017

The Dutch esports team held off challenges from Planet Odd, Team Secret, and Vega Squadron to come through the four-team event and claim the lion’s share of the $175,000 prize pool.

The Double Bracket tournament opened with Team Secret taking on the only North American qualifier for the tournament, Planet Odd. The latter claimed a 2-1 victory.

Things were a little easier in the second semi as Team Liquid came through 2-0 over Vega Squadron, with both matches taking about an hour to complete (55 and 66 minutes). That meant Team Secret and Vega Squadron met in the Losers Round One, with Planet Odd and Team Liquid moving into the Winners Final.

In the Losers Round One, it was Team Secret who came through with a 2-1 victory, while Team Liquid emerged with a 2-0 win in the other bracket to claim a spot in the Grand Finals.

Planet Odd then earned the other Grand Final spot with a straightforward 2-0 win over Team Secret in little over 70 minutes of total play. That gave the North American team a second chance at the team that had just beaten them in the Winners Final.

Planet Odd started the Grand Final in a determined mood and raced into a 2-0 lead in the opening two games. With their backs against the wall, Team Liquid kicked things up a gear. They took the third map in an incredibly quick time of just 17 minutes. Then, after 56 minutes of exciting play that ebbed and flowed for both sides, Team Liquid pulled a second win out of the hat to tie things up.

In the decisive Game Five, Team Liquid dominated once again, winning the final map in just over 25 minutes to turn around a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 victory.

Team Liquid’s run of success

This was the fourth big victory of 2017 for Team Liquid. They took the $135,000 top prize for the StarLadder i-League StarSeries Season 3 back in February. After a spring dip in quality of play, they won both the StarLadder i-League Invitational #2 for $45,000 and earned a much bigger $250,000 top prize for winning the EPICENTER 2017 event in June.

They now follow OG as only the second team to win back-to-back DreamLeague events.

A look at Team Liquid’s roster

For some background, this Dota 2 team was founded as a Brood War clan back in 2000. Over the years, they switched to StarCraft 2, and in December 2012, they also branched into Dota 2. Since their Dota 2 inception in 2012, the team has amassed $2.7 million in tournament earnings.

The current five-man roster for the Team Liquid Dota 2 squad is:

• MATUMBAMAN – Lasse Urpalainen (Finland)
• Miracle – Amer Al-Barkawi (Jordan)
• MinD ContRoL – Ivan Borislavov (Bulgaria)
• GH – Maroun Merhej (Lebanon)
• KuroKy – Kuro Saleh Takhasomi (Germany)

The team is currently managed by Victor “Nazgul” Goossens, the founder, co-owner, and co-CEO of Team Liquid. Steve Arhancet is a co-owner and co-CEO, while Mohamad Morad is the manager, and Lee Seung Gon is the coach.

Team Liquid Roll of Honour

Here’s an outline of Team Liquid’s record of wins in Premier-level tournaments or with finishes in the top four:

2017

• DreamLeague Season 7 – 1st ($80,000)
• EPICENTER 2017 – 1st ($45,000)
• StarLadder i-League Invitational #2 – 1^st ($9,000)
• StarLadder i-League StarSeries Season 3 – 1^st ($135,000)

2016

• DreamLeague Season 6 – 1^st ($90,000)
• The International 2016 – 7^th/8^th ($519,262)
• The Summit 5 – 3^rd ($13,136)
• ESL One Frankfurt 2016 – 3^rd/4^th ($28,309)
• The Manila Major 2016 – 2^nd ($405,000)
• EPICENTER 2016 – 1^st  ($250,000)
• ESL One Manila 2016 – 2^nd ($50,000)
• The Shanghai Major 2016 – 2^nd ($405,000)
• StarLadder i-League StarSeries Season 1 – 3^rd/4^th ($30,223)

2015

• World Cyber Arena 2015 – 3^rd ($77,125)
• Nanyang Dota2 Championships – 4^th ($17,615)

2014

• The International 2014 – 9^th/10^th – $49,158

2013

• DreamLeague Kick Off Season – 4^th – $2,500
• Dota2 Champions League Season 2 – 4^th – $3,000
• The Defense Season 4 – 4^th ($2,000)
• The International 2013 – 7^th/8^th – $43,116
• The Defense Season 3 – 4^th ($1,500)

Team Liquid are one of the invited teams to The International 2017. More details of this competition will be brought to you in a special two-part preview next week.

Ian John

Since: August 10, 2015

Ian is a regular contributor to EsportsBets. Ian is well-versed in the world of esports betting and casino gaming and has written extensively on the online gambling industry. Ian brings fresh insight into all facets of gaming.

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