Several teams start strong on first day of DreamLeague Season 26

No team was a perfect 2-0-0 on the first day of DreamLeague Season 26, but six different Dota 2 teams got off to strong starts with one win and one tie in Monday's action.

Aurora Gaming and BetBoom Team are 1-0-1 to sit atop Group A, while four teams are tied atop Group B: Gaimin Gladiators, NAVI Junior, PARIVISION and Yakult Brothers. Three days remain in Group Stage 1 for the clubs to get some separation from one another.

Sixteen teams are competing in the $1 million Dota 2 tournament, divided into two groups of eight in Group Stage 1. The top four teams from each group will advance to Group Stage 2, consisting of one single round-robin group.

All matches are two-game series in Group Stage 1, while the next phase will feature best-of-three matches. Four teams will then compete in a double-elimination playoff bracket, featuring best-of-three matches until the best-of-five grand final on June 1.

The first-place team will take home $250,000 of the $1 million prize pool, plus a $40,000 club reward. There will also be 29,200 ESL Pro Tour points distributed among the participating teams.

In Group A on Monday, Aurora claimed a 2-0 win over BOOM Esports (44 minutes on red, 32 minutes on green) and BetBoom defeated Team Liquid (47 and 64 minutes, both on green). Three other matches also ended in 2-0 sweeps: Nigma Galaxy over Shopify Rebellion, Team Liquid over Nigma Galaxy and Shopify Rebellion over Xtreme Gaming.

As for Group B, PARIVISION's victory came over Team Falcons in 35 minutes on green and 30 minutes on red. Gaimin Gladiators defeated Edge in 28 minutes on green and 34 minutes on red. NAVI Junior triumphed over AVULUS in 51 minutes on green and 38 minutes on red, and Yakult Brothers swept Edge in 57 minutes on red and 23 minutes on green.

Group Stage 1 standings (win-loss-tie, map record)

Group A

T1. Aurora Gaming, 1-0-1, 3-1

T1. BetBoom Team, 1-0-1, 3-1

T3. Nigma Galaxy, 1-1-0, 2-2

T3. OG.LATAM, 0-0-2, 2-2

T3. Shopify Rebellion, 1-1-0, 2-2

T3. Team Liquid, 1-1-0, 2-2

T7. BOOM Esports, 0-1-1, 1-3

T7. Xtreme Gaming, 0-1-1, 1-3

Group B

T1. Gaimin Gladiators, 1-0-1, 3-1

T1. NAVI Junior, 1-0-1, 3-1

T1. PARIVISION, 1-0-1, 3-1

T1. Yakult Brothers, 1-0-1, 3-1

5. Talon Esports, 0-0-2, 2-2

T6. AVULUS, 0-1-1, 1-3

T6. Team Falcons, 0-1-1, 1-3

8. Edge, 0-2-0, 0-4