Dota 2's Great American Rivalry kicks off today

Tired of all the drama in esports? Do you just want to see some Dota 2? The Great American Rivalry is starting today and here’s why you should be excited.

There hasn’t been a lack of Dota 2 events lately as at least one tournament is always running. Today will be no exception as The Great American Rivalry is about to begin in a matter of hours. It’s organized by 4D Esports and sponsored by Rivalry and Aorus. Dota 2 fans will have a chance to see some of the best America has to offer. Don’t get us wrong though, TGAR is certainly not an event limited to only the best of the best.

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The Great American Rivalry will be split into two divisions each with 10 teams. Division 1 will feature the best teams from the US, Peru and Brazil, while Division 2 will be for the Tier 2 teams which want to make it big. The duration of each division is also different. Division 2 will start on July 4 and come to an end on August 16, while Division 1 will commence today July 1, and conclude on August 2. The prize pool for Division 1 stands at $47,500 while Division 2 teams will be competing for $2,500.

Announcing THE GREAT AMERICAN RIVALRY! The LARGEST tournament in SA Dota HISTORY featuring coverage by @BeyondTheSummit, @moonstudiodota, & 4DWebsite - https://t.co/DW3tf9DbsFLiquipedia - https://t.co/Mnqgp2WbmsStarting Tomorrow pic.twitter.com/VECsuM0ACr
— Rivalry Dota (@RivalryDota2) June 30, 2020

Here’s also the full list of teams:

Division 1

CR4ZY
Quincy Crew
business associates
Thunder Predator
Infamous
Infinity Esports
Midas Club
4 Zoomers
beastcoast
Vira-Lata Caramelo

Division 2

Gorillaz-Pride
Team Unknown
Omega Gaming
Incubus Gaming
Vicious Gaming
Luxor Gaming
Spirits Esports
SandBlood
EgoBoys
Vicious Gaming Young

The favorites to take the title in Division 1 are mostly some of the NA team. If we had to bet on it, it’ll probably be a fight between CR4ZY and Quincy Crew. In Division 2, as expected, most of the teams are relatively unknown and the only one which stands out is Gorillaz-Pride. Whether they’ll take the lead remains to be seen. We could also see some twists and turns in the higher division as nothing is written in stone.

Format

Division 1

During the group stage, all teams play in a Bo2 Single-Robin format. The top four teams advance to the upper bracket playoffs, 5-6th advance to the lower bracket playoffs. The bottom two go to relegation playoffs. The playoffs use the double-elimination format. All matches are Bo3 except the grand final which is a Bo5.

Division 2

During the group stage, all teams play in a Bo2 Single-Robin format. The top two teams advance to the upper bracket playoffs. The playoffs use double elimination and all series are Bo3 with no exceptions.The event will last for over a month so there’s always time to join in and have a look. Who do you think will take the first place?