Team Liquid has won The International 2024, TI13, in a clean 3-0 victory against Gaimin Gladiators. Liquid lifted the Aegis of Champions following a smooth upper bracket run through the tournament, not dropping a single game during the entire playoffs – the most successful performance by a team at The International.
Despite this being Team Liquid’s second TI victory, this marks a significant accomplishment for the team’s current line-up, which broke an long-time curse of never quite being able to secure victory in a major tournament.
Team Liquid wins TI13
Team Liquid lifts the Aegis of Immortal (Image credit: Valve)
Among Dota 2 fans, Team Liquid was arguably known for being the most consistent yet unluckiest Dota 2 team ever, here’s why:
The Western European powerhouse has always been a force to be reckoned with, giving the best Dota 2 teams a run for their money. Yet, when it comes to the grand finals, they always fall just short of winning.
Dubbed the ‘Second-place Curse,’ Team Liquid’s run of never winning an event began since MichaĹ‚ “Nisha” Jankowski joined the stack in 2023. Together with his team, he has finished second in seven major tournaments, including:
- Lima Major 2023
- DreamLeague Season 19
- ESL One Berlin Major 2023
- Bali Major 2023
- Riyadh Masters 2023
- BetBoom Dacha Dubai 2024
- Riyadh Masters 2024
Fear of the Second-place Curse
Going into TI13, the same anxiety was likely felt by the Team Liquid roster as history might just repeat itself. Getting to the Grand Finals was a breeze for the most part, as the team didn’t drop a single game during the playoffs, but the fear of an upset certainly stresses even the best Dota 2 players.
miCKe’s Nature’s Prophet
Nevertheless, Liquid still played phenomenally and different when it comes to the grand finals. Liquid finally reveal their final ace up their sleeve: Michael “miCKe” Vu’s Nature’s Prophet. Unbanned in all three Grand Final matches, miCKe’s Nature’s Prophet was too swift at changing the game’s pace.
Michael “miCKe” Vu (Image credit: The International 2024)
Each team fight led to further losses for Gaimin in terms of their towers. Eventually, without sufficient resources and space to farm till late game, miCKe was already knocking on their base.
Boxi and Insania’s clutch saves
It goes without saying that miCKe and the other carry players wouldn’t make it this far without Samuel “Boxi” Svahn’s support. Boxi was responsible for every save in the game with his Tusk plays.
Oftentimes, he kept his teammates alive long enough for them to turn the tide. What’s even more incredible is how he often survives these dangerous encounters himself. And of course, there were also Aydin “Insania” Sarkohi’s incredible saves using Shadow Demon.
Samuel “Boxi” Svahn (Image credit: The International 2024)
The Team Liquid players have had their fair share of ups and downs. Winning TI in 2024 isn’t about the prize pool, especially since it’s nothing like it used to. Instead, it’s about their journey. There have been plenty of missteps along the way, including that unfortunate incident at TI9 when Insania picked the wrong hero during the draft. Despite that, Boxi and miCKe have stuck with him since joining Team Liquid.
It has been a long journey for this team but they persevered and have finally immortalized their names forever as the International 2024 Champions.
