ESL brings their world-class Dota 2 to the North America region to kickstart the new 2025 season. ESL One Raleigh 2025 is set for April 7-13 next year, which is an exciting event for NA fans.
However, for pro players, who might be participating? Not so much.
ESL One Raleigh 2025 (Image credit: ESL)
Tournament details about ESL One Raleigh 2025
ESL One Raleigh 2025 is a big deal. Being part of the ESL Pro Tour (EPT 2025) circuit, the stakes are high for Dota 2 teams to compete here for a chance to play at Riyadh Masters 2025.
Additionally, it’s ESL One we are talking about here, where top-tier production quality and world-class Dota 2 are absolute. We can expect the same classic tournament format featuring a group stage and playoffs.
Group stage comprise of two single round-robin groups of six teams each, where each series is a best-of-two. And playoffs are the standard double-elimination bracket, where matches are best-of-three, except the grand final.
Dota 2 tournaments in North America
While there’s clearly a lot of hype and anticipation for ESL One Raleigh 2025, the location ESL chose to host their tournament leaves much to be desired. Entry into North America has always been a tedious hassle for international visitors, who require a US visa.
Hence, many suggested that pro teams, which are likely to qualify for the event, should expedite their US visa application beforehand. However, this still becomes a tricky situation as pro players applying for US visa with the purpose of visiting to compete will not have any proof of participation at the event yet.
ESL returns to NA in 2025 (Image credit: ESL)
Which teams will participate at ESL One Raleigh 2025?
The top four teams on the EPT Leaderboard will receive a direct invite to ESL One Raleigh 2025, which are currently Team Falcons, BetBoom Team, Team Spirit, and PARIVISION. This current standing is based on the recent DreamLeague S24 results, so this may change after ESL One Bangkok 2024 concludes.
While most of these powerhouses likely already have US visa available or renewed, it’s the newer players in these teams that could potentially miss out on ESL One Raleigh 2025. For instance, Aleksandr “rue” Filin and Alan “Satanic” Gallyamov in Team Spirit, who only debut in competitive scene two years ago.
Whereas, we expect Team Falcons, Team Liquid and Gaimin Gladiators, which have more seasoned players, to not have such concerns. All in all, ESL One Raleigh 2025 is still worthwhile watching, being one of ESL’s tournaments. However, expect many participating teams to have a couple stand-ins on tournament day.