TI Time Machine: Dota 2 TI Results vs Favorites (2018-2025)
Pick any year from TI8 to TI14 — the widget below shows whether the pre-tournament favorite actually won, which bracket path the champion took, and the group-stage seed that went the distance.
TI Time Machine
Pick a year. Relive the drama — and spot the patterns before TI 2026.
What the Numbers Show
Seven TI editions. The two numbers in the summary strip at the bottom of the widget are the ones worth knowing before TI 2026.
Upper-bracket winners took the title in 4 of 5 traditional-format TIs (TI8 through TI12). That 80% rate is the single strongest statistical signal in TI bracket history. The one exception — Team Spirit at TI10 (2021) — entered as Group B seed #4, ran every lower-bracket match, and beat PSG.LGD 3-2 in the Grand Final in what remains the biggest modern TI underdog run on record.
Pre-TI LAN data covers only two confirmed years: 2024 and 2025 via EWC. In 2024, Team Falcons won EWC but did not win TI13. In 2025, Falcons won EWC and went on to win TI14 as well — 1 of 2 confirmed years where the pre-TI LAN winner doubled up. The 2022 and 2023 Riyadh Masters winners are not confirmed in available sources; the widget marks those years as unverified rather than guessing.
Group Seeds: Above Average, Not Automatic
The #1 group seed won TI in 3 of 5 traditional-format editions — 60%, above coin-flip odds but weaker than the upper-bracket path signal. TI8 (2018) showed why seeding alone is unreliable: both group-stage #1 seeds (Team Liquid and VGJ.Storm) were eliminated before the Grand Final. OG won TI8 as Group B seed #4 through the open qualifiers with a brand-new roster. The biggest TI underdog story ever told.
The Back-to-Back Question
Only one team has ever defended a TI title: OG, who won TI8 (2018) and TI9 (2019). Every other champion failed to repeat. Team Spirit won TI10 and TI12, but not back-to-back. Tundra Esports, Team Liquid — none matched OG.
For TI 2026, Team Falcons are the defending TI14 champions. A Falcons win would make them only the second back-to-back team in TI history. History says fade the repeat. History also said OG were impossible.
The Swiss Era Data Gap
TI13 (2024) and TI14 (2025) used a Swiss group-stage format instead of traditional round-robin groups. Swiss seeding logic differs from traditional group seeds, and bracket path data for those two years is not confirmed in available sources. The Time Machine marks those fields as unconfirmed rather than guessing. Champion, runner-up, and score are verified for all years.
For TI 2026
For historical rates by pick type — defending champion, upper-bracket favorite, #1 seed, lower-bracket dark horse — use the TI Bracket Pick Helper on this site. For MMR climbing context while you follow TI 2026, the Dota 2 MMR Calculator gives a realistic game count for any rank target at your actual win rate.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many TIs does the Time Machine cover?
Seven editions: TI8 (2018), TI9 (2019), TI10 (2021), TI11 (2022), TI12 (2023), TI13 (2024), and TI14 (2025). TI 2020 did not take place. Bracket path and seed data is fully confirmed for TI8-TI12. TI13 and TI14 bracket data is marked unconfirmed.
What does Pre-TI LAN Winner mean and why are some years unconfirmed?
It is the team that won the last major LAN event before TI in the same calendar year. EWC provides confirmed data for 2024 and 2025. The 2022 and 2023 Riyadh Masters winners are not confirmed in available sources and are labeled unconfirmed in the widget. 2018 and 2019 pre-date any equivalent confirmed pre-TI LAN format.
Why is the upper-bracket rate higher than the seed rate?
Group seeding positions a team at tournament start, but bracket path tracks what actually happened in the matches that mattered. A #1 seed can lose immediately in the upper bracket; the bracket path reflects actual performance rather than the starting advantage.
Where can I see historical rates broken down by pick type?
The TI Bracket Pick Helper covers defending champion (1 of 7, 14%), upper-bracket favorite (4 of 5, 80%), #1 group seed (3 of 5, 60%), and lower-bracket dark horse (1 of 5, 20%) with sample sizes and format caveats. If your own rank is on your mind while you watch TI 2026, our Dota 2 coaching page covers what training with active coaches actually looks like.
