The GAMERS GALAXY Invitational Series Dubai 2022 kicks off the first Dota 2 LAN for the year despite ongoing pandemic. Last month, Valve regrettably announced the cancellation of the Dota Pro Circuit 2021-22 (DPC2021-22) Major due to similar concerns.

Nevertheless, it’s all eyes on Dubai as a LAN tournament worth $270,000 in prize pool is definitely worth watching. To top it off, the event even invited high-profile powerhouses from various regions, making the event the first international showdown between DPC teams.

Dota 2 powerhouses join the fray

We have plenty of Dota 2 esports heavy hitters confirming their attendance. First up, Team Spirit is the most anticipated team making its entry into Dubai. As the International 10 (TI10) Champions, it is held in high regard as the strongest team in the scene. Team Spirit also continued to bulldoze its way into DPC2021-22, winning the DPC EEU Regional Finals as cherry on top. Thus, that’s good enough of a reason to fear this team, and even more so to pick them on your betting slip for Dota 2 betting.

Many speculated that Team Spirit’s dominance isn’t all that impeccable, especially since the Dota 2 Patch 7.31 released last week. If there’s one factor the other candidates can capitalize against Team Spirit in the GAMERS GALAXY Invitational Series Dubai 2022, it’s likely the drafts.

Speaking of formidable opponents, BOOM Esports, Team Secret, and TeamSoloMid might be the only plausible challengers against Team Spirit. BOOM Esports has been phenomenal in the DPC SEA Regional Finals, where they are said to be in a whole different league over the likes of SEA opponents. Regardless of BOOM Esports’ strong showcase, they did recently pick up a new player, which may affect their performance in GAMERS GALAXY Invitational Series Dubai 2022.

Invited teams at GAMERS GALAXY Invitational Series Dubai 2022

Team Secret is by no means an accomplished candidate from the Western Europe region in DPC2021-22. They lost fifth place, falling short of team OG, an opponent that Team Secret has historically defeated. Although Team Secret felt lost in DPC2021-22, there’s high hopes for them to be in tip-top form at the Dubai 2022 Dota tournament. Familiar Team Secret fans know that the team falls off during the later days of an aged patch. Team Secret’s true strength lies in Clement “Puppey” Ivanov’s mischievous drafts and strategies.

Hence, we can expect Puppey to reveal a revolutionary Dota 2 meta that redefines our casual pub matches.

From North America, TSM took down the king of the hill, Evil Geniuses, to brag about becoming NA’s best team. Formerly known as Team Undying, TSM is as close as a NA powerhouse we can have besides EG. While TSM performed exceptionally in DPC NA Regional Finals, the typical dilemma is that the NA region is the weakest, and a first-place winner isn’t as credible as their European counterparts.

Other participants include prominent powerhouses and names, such as Fnatic, Virtus.pro, OG, and Tundra Esports. Of course, the organizer, Galaxy Racer, also invited their Dota 2 divisions, Nigma Galaxy, and sister team, Nigma Galaxy SEA.

Matches we like to see at Gamers Galaxy Invitational

There is plenty of strength testing and power rankings we can work on for this event. Some matches however, are more interesting than others. Here’s who we wanna see measure up:

Team Spirit vs Nigma Galaxy

A round between Team Spirit and Nigma Galaxy will surely be exciting because both teams have never played against each other. However, Nigma Galaxy has been extremely sloppy in DPC2021-22 to justify featuring them as a potential challenger vs Team Spirit. Nigma still hasn’t recuperated from their poor performance since missing TI10.

Nevertheless, the former TI7 Champion is persistent to make their roster work, where the recent patch is ideal testing ground. While there are still high hopes for Nigma, expecting to win versus Team Spirit is a lost cause.

BOOM Esports vs OG

BOOM has been wonderful in their region and seemingly looked like a consistent team. Unfortunately, much to fans’ dismay, we didn’t get the opportunity to watch BOOM versus other regional opponents.

The GAMERS GALAXY Invitational Series Dubai 2022 opens up that opportunity, and there’s decent competition to gauge where BOOM stands among other established teams. BOOM will play versus OG, as one of its most-anticipated opponents in their group. However, we will also be getting BOOM vs Team Secret and Virtus.pro as well.

Despite the early signs of BOOM’s great performance, it’s going to be difficult, considering the SEA winner’s situation. They did have a recent roster change on their carry player, and the Dota 2 Patch 7.31 could play a major role in making BOOM obsolete.

Team Secret against all teams

Frankly, Team Secret has been underwhelming for the last Tour of DPC2021-22. However, we will give Puppey and his team the benefit of the doubt here. They were playing the same patch that most teams already know what is the meta for a long duration.

Considering Team Secret’s winning condition has never been about their execution, but more of their unorthodox drafts. We think Team Secret just hasn’t gotten their ideal patch to become a prominent team. It will be a decent group stage for Team Secret, where they are facing SEA’s top team, BOOM, and an old nemesis, OG. Virtus.pro, albeit pales in comparison to its regional rival, Team Spirit, can pose a decent challenge for Team Secret.

In hindsight, the GAMERS GALAXY Invitational Series Dubai 2022 is the next biggest LAN tournament behind the DPC2021-22 events. It’s been a long time since TI10 that the Dota 2 fans last watched a decent LAN tournament, with beaming lights and cheers of crowds. Therefore, don’t miss the GAMERS GALAXY Invitational Series Dubai 2022 happening from March 2-6.

Of course, a tournament of such calibre deserves some cheap thrills, so consider Dota 2 betting for adrenaline-filled fun. The curated selection of esports bookmakers has the best bargain in terms of Dota 2 odds if wagering on your favorite teams is up your alley.