Evil Geniuses vs. OG headlines group stages at the ESL One Los Angeles Major

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The third Major of the 2019-20 Dota Pro Circuit is about to begin. The City of Angels heralds the return of two-time The International champions to the DPC, and Dota 2 fans will be salivating at one of their first matchups of the tournament.

The groups look relatively well spread out and even. But all eyes will be on Group B.

That group kicks things off with Evil Geniuses vs. OG in the initial round of the group stages. It’s always exciting to see the two teams butt heads because of the two extremes in playstyles they represent. Fans will also get to see SumaiL go up against his former EG squad. It’s certainly going to be one of the most hyped series, and that’s just in the group stages.

Win or lose, it will be hard-pressed to bet against EG or OG to secure the upper-bracket slots here. Chaos EC and GeekFam are the other two competitors in Group B and will have to cause some upsets to take down the two juggernauts above them.

Team Secret is the clear favorite in Group A. They should have no troubles dispatching Thunder Predator, Royal Never Give Up, or Natus Vincere, but the second slot will likely be a bloodbath.

All three teams are as yet unproven this season. Royal Never Give Up’s best performance has been a grand finals loss vs. Nigma at the Bukovel Minor, Natus Vincere have yet to finish in the top half of a Major, and Thunder Predator is an untested team.

Group C is the most even of the lot. Invictus Gaming is likely the best team here, but Fnatic has gone from strength to strength every tournament they played. EHOME and Ninjas in Pyjamas have seen improvements after their roster revamps. There are enough unknowns in this group that could really shake up the playoff bracket and provide some nerve-wracking experiences for their fans.

StarLadder ImbaTV Dota 2 Minor champions Team Aster put on a tour-de-force in Kyiv. The Chinese team dropped just one game and looked to be on top of their form coming into the Major. If their full lineup makes it to the Major, it seems like they will edge out Group D consisting of beastcoast, Virtus Pro, and Team Adroit.

Related: Minor champions Aster might run into visa issues before ESL One Los Angeles Major

The second upper bracket berth in the group will likely go to beastcoast or Virtus Pro. Beastcoast have enjoyed a series of top-half finishes in this season’s Majors, while Virtus Pro has upgraded their roster. Adroit is not a bad team by any means, but their captain being unable to make it to LA due to visa issues is a tough hurdle to overcome.