Dota 2's DreamLeague Season 13: The Leipzig Major has found its first European participants as Team Secret, Team Liquid and Alliance have advanced from the tournament’s closed qualifier. The DreamHack-hosted event is the second Major of the 2019-20 Dota Pro Circuit, and will take place in January of next year in Leipzig, Germany. The European qualifier represents just one of six regions that will participate in tournament.
The European closed qualifier saw ten teams compete for three spots in the Leipzig event. While the top three teams advanced to the Major, the teams placing fourth through seventh were awarded spots in the qualifiers for the WePlay! Bukovel Minor. The Minor will offer another chance to qualify for the main event.
Team Liquid cruised through the group stage, topping Group A undefeated. They kicked off their qualifier run with a quick 2-0 over GODSENT, and later defeated the newly named Nigma to close out the group. The roster next played their former organization Alliance in the play-offs, the winners locking in their spot in The Leipzig Major. A full team effort earned Liquid the victory in game one, while thirteen kills from Max “qojqva” Bröcker powered the team to the 2-0 series win. This will be Team Liquid’s second Dota 2 Major appearance this season, as they exited the previous MDL Chengdu Major in 5-6th place.
Team Secret started off Group B in similar fashion, taking 2-0 wins over Wind and Rain and SworDDarK- on day one. The squad followed up with a 1-1 tie with Vikin.gg and another 2-0 over Alliance. Secret met Nigma in the qualifying match, using Michał "Nisha" Jankowski’s Magnus to take game one in thirty minutes. Though Kuro “KuroKy” Salehi Takhasomi and co. answered back in game two, Secret were able to secure their Leipzig Major appearance with a 2-1 series victory.
One match remained in the European qualifier, this time pitting Nigma against Alliance for the third available spot in Leipzig. A rough game one ensued for the TI7 champions as Linus "Limmp" Blomdin’s Magnus, teamed with efforts from Nikolay "Nikobaby" Nikolov, allowed Alliance to take the win in 31 minutes. Game two was a closer affair, though Limmp once again exerted his strength across the map, this time fielding Tiny. The Swedish mid laner ended the game with sixteen kills and zero deaths, propelling Alliance straight to the Leipzig Major with a 2-0 victory.
Nigma will have another chance to make the Major, as they next go to the WePlay! Bukovel Minor qualifiers. The Dota Pro Circuit will bring Team Liquid, Team Secret, and Alliance to DreamLeague Season 13: The Leipzig Major in January of 2020.