Qualifiers For Kiev Major 2017 Are Set This Week In Esports Betting

[toc]Last week, we began by writing about the Main Qualifiers taking place around the world to decide the final eight places of the 2017 Kiev Major.

These qualifying squads will join the eight invited teams (Wings Gaming, OG, Ex-Ad Finem, Team Liquid, Evil Geniuses, Digital Chaos, Newbee, and Team VG.J) in Kiev at the end of April to battle it out for $3 million in Dota 2 prize money.

Who qualified for the 2017 Kiev Major?

The eight teams that made it through the Main Qualifiers are:

• North America Qualifier – Team Onyx
• South America Qualifier – SG e-sports
• Europe Qualifier – Team Secret
• CIS Qualifier – pro
• China Qualifier 1 – iG Vitality
• China Qualifier 2 – Invictus Gaming
• SEA Qualifier 1 – Team Faceless
• SEA Qualifier 2 – TNC Pro Team

Team Onyx had an interesting qualification journey in North America. Finishing third in the group stage, they then lost in the first round of knockout matches to CompLexity Gaming, who had already beaten them in the group phase.

However, Onyx managed to come through the losers bracket of the knockout phase to reach the grand final where CompLexity Gaming lay in wait once again. Onyx knocked out the favorites with a fine 2-1 win to earn their place in Kiev.

In contrast, Team Secret made light work of qualification from the European section. They finished at top of the group stage to earn the top seed position at 8-1. Then, they progressed through the playoffs by winning all three games 2-0.

What’s new this year?

The event in Kiev will be the first time that a Dota Major Championship event has been held in a CIS country.

Also new, the 16 teams will also have to contend in a single elimination bracket event with no group stage. This means teams that win their best-of-three series will progress to the quarterfinals, and the losers go home. There are no second chances. All matches are best of three apart from the grand final, which is a best-of-five matchup.

Early Kiev Major betting

Kiev Major offerings with Bet365 remain the same as last week, but punters can get a little extra value if they fancy a punt on either of the two qualifiers in China or Southeast Asia.

Currently, Bet365 has marked up prizes for the eight teams directly invited to Kiev 2017, but for each of the qualifiers there is just one price for each region.

This means that if bettors back the Chinese qualifier (currently 8/1) or the SEA qualifier (10/1), they have double the chance of winning because there are two qualifiers from these groups, not just one. Bet365 ranks these two qualifiers as among the best six bets to win the event, so they are both of solid value.

This option may change when Bet365 reviews the qualifiers for the event in Kiev, so it may be wise to take advantage of the offer while it remains available.

Two huge StarCraft 2 tournaments this week in Seoul

It’s been a little while since we ventured into the world of individual esports play. But with two massive StarCraft 2 tournaments kicking off in the space of a few days in Seoul, now seems a good time to take a quick look.

2017 VSL Season One Individual League

From March 16 through April 20, 16 of the finest SCII players will compete in the 2017 VSL Season One Individual League. An initial group stage will be followed by a straight knockout phase. The winning player will take home the top prize of $8,800.

The 16 players comprise eight Protoss players, four Terran, and four Zerg. Some of the biggest names in Korean SCII gaming are competing, including world-renowned players like ByuL, ByuN, Impact, herO, Zest, Patience, and Stats.

The 16 players have been split into four groups of four. Group A plays March 16, Group B on March 17, Group C on March 23, and Group D on March 24.

The groups are drawn as follows:

• Group A – herO, Creator, ByuL, ByuN
• Group B – Rogue, Bunny, Classic, Solar
• Group C – Forte, Patience, Dear, Zest
• Group D – Stats, jjakji, Trust, Impact

Two players from each group will qualify for the knockout phase, which will be played through until the final on April 20.

Bet365 has SCII legend ByuN as the 10/3 favorite for this event, with Stats a 15/4 second favorite ahead of herO at 5/1, Solar at 13/2, and Zest at 15/2.

These are clearly where the smart money is: All other players at least 14/1 or greater odds. Creator is the 100/1 outsider to win the tournament.

2017 StarCraft II StarLeague Season 1

Starting March 20 and running until June 10, the prestigious StarCraft II StarLeague Season 1 gets underway in Seoul with 10 of the best players in the world competing for another $8,800 top prize and a prize pool of almost $55,000.

The 10 individuals will compete in a group stage, playing each opponent once, with the top four players progressing into the playoffs.

This is a seeded event. The third and fourth seeds will face each other before the winner takes on the second seed, and then the winner of that game takes on the top seed in the grand final.

The 10 players are sOs, INnoVation, Zest, Solar, Maru, Stats, ByuL, aLive, Patience, and Dark. Each player will play one game per week through the qualifying process until all group stage games are completed.

Bet365 is offering odds on which of the ten players will win the league: INnoVation is the 15/4 favorite, ahead of Stats at 11/2, Dark at 6/1, Maru at 13/2, and sOs and Solar at 7/1. These are followed by Zest at 8/1, aLive and ByuL at 10/1, and the outsider is Patience at 14/1.

Who will follow Dark and Solar as winners of this huge event? Tune in during the next few weeks to find out more.