DALLAS, TX — May 25 – ESL FACEIT Group (EFG), the leading esports and video game entertainment company, and DreamHack, a leading global gaming lifestyle festival, today announced that DreamHack Dallas welcomed over 60,000 attendees from across the globe to the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center from May 23-25. Blending nostalgic gaming culture with an unmistakable Texas flair, the three-day event saw over 900 special guests, streamers, cosplay icons, and entertainers, and featured the biggest esports programming in DreamHack’s history, with over $2M in prize pools across multiple competitions, generating over 22M in hours watched online. Spotlighting the region’s passionate esports community and creative scene, DreamHack Dallas hosted more than 125 local game developers and artists in the Indie Playground and Artist Alley.
“DreamHack Dallas was one of our most ambitious festivals to date, spanning over 1 million square feet packed with nonstop action,” said Guy Blomberg, Event Director, DreamHack Festivals, Americas. “From our largest creator lineup to fans flying in from across the country, Dallas showed up in full force. We set out to create a space where gaming communities could connect, and the energy on the show floor proved we delivered.”
Up next, DreamHack returns to Atlanta, Georgia from October 31–November 2, bringing its signature blend of gaming and pop culture back to the Southeast. Shortly after, the festival heads to its roots in Stockholm, Sweden from November 28–30 for another unforgettable weekend in the capital. Tickets for both events are now on sale, and starting May 25, the DreamHack Atlanta Flash Sale will offer exclusive three-day tickets for just $59 until June 8.
Esports Highlights
Team Vitality Triumphs at IEM Dallas, Securing 30 Consecutive LAN CS Series Victories
After a week of the world’s best Counter-Strike 2 squads going head to head on the world stage, Team Vitality triumphed over MOUZ 3-0 to claim the Intel® Extreme Masters (IEM) title. This victory marks their milestone of 30 consecutive CS LAN series wins and their 6th straight title. A total of 913,741 viewers tuned in at the event’s peak, highlighting IEM Dallas’s continued resonance with fans around the world.
Group Stage
The Group Stage took place from May 19 to 21, featuring two groups of eight teams each. The format saw the top two teams from the upper bracket and the top team from the lower bracket in each group advance to the Playoffs. In Group A, Team Vitality delivered a commanding performance to top the upper bracket, with The MongolZ securing the second spot. GamerLegion fought their way through the lower bracket to claim the final Playoff spot. Group B witnessed a standout run from Aurora Esports, who defeated HEROIC in the lower bracket final to punch their ticket to the next stage. Meanwhile, MOUZ and Team Falcons locked in their spots from the upper bracket, rounding out the Playoff lineup.
Playoffs
The final stage of the tournament kicked off on Friday, May 23, with a thrilling quarterfinal showdown between Team Falcons and GamerLegion. Both teams delivered a hard-fought battle, but it was Team Falcon’s teamwork that gave them the edge, clinching a 2-1 victory and their place in the semifinals. The second quarterfinal was The MongolZ against Aurora. The MongolZ dominated every map, earning themselves a score of 2-0.
Saturday, May 24, saw the semifinals take place, with the top two teams from the Group Stage up against the quarterfinal winners. MOUZ proved themselves against The MongolZ as they secured their seat in the Grand Final with a flawless 2-0 score, and Vitality won against Team Falcons in a tight match, 2-1.
The grand final of IEM Dallas 2025 saw a familiar rivalry reignited as MOUZ and Team Vitality faced off in their fourth high-stakes final. The series opened on Dust2, Vitality’s pick, where they edged out a narrow 13-11 win in a tightly contested map. On Mirage, MOUZ’s chosen battleground, Vitality once again asserted their dominance with a 13-9 victory. The final map, Inferno, also went the way of Vitality, who closed out the series 13-8, marking their 30th consecutive win. With a commanding 3-0 sweep, Team Vitality not only secured the championship title but also claimed the lion’s share of the $1M total winnings.
FURIA Makes History by dethroning the undefeated champions in the Season 7 Dallas Finals
ESL Impact Season 7 saw some ground-breaking moments as Imperial’s dynasty came to an end with FURIA being crowned the new ESL Impact Champions. For the first time in the history of ESL Impact, the Grand Final was played out in front of a roaring crowd in the IEM arena of Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. After beating top women’s squads, it was FURIA that secured a hard-fought 2-1 comeback win over Supernova Comets in the Grand Final. After dropping the first map, FURIA rallied on Overpass and Mirage to secure the series and take home the largest share of the $123,000 prize pool.
LAThieves Hoists the Call of Duty League Major IV Trophy in Front of a Full Crowd
DreamHack Dallas saw three days of the Call of Duty Major IV competition as 12 teams battled to earn valuable CDL points to qualify for the 2025 Call of Duty® League Championship later this year. After a hard-fought battle, LAThieves won over Atlanta FaZe 4-2 to claim the title in front of a packed crowd making this a back-to-back win for LAThieves.
The Halo Championship Series Esports Breaks Records
The Halo Championship Series (HCS) brought a valuable opportunity for established pros and rising stars to earn their share of the $150,000 grand prize in addition to valuable pro points. After a weekend of intense competition, OpTic Gaming triumphed over FaZe Clan 4:1 in an exciting Grand Final.
History was also made at DreamHack Dallas this year, Allyson “commandstation” Annelle was the first woman to ever win an official Halo HCS Free-For-All tournament on LAN.
ENVY Secures the NA Ticket to Red Bull Home Ground’s Main Event
Red Bull Home Ground US Qualifier offered VALORANT players an opportunity to showcase their skills. The qualifier took place in front of a big crowd on the Main Stage in a best-of-three series. ENVY rose to the occasion on their home turf, who dominated Maryville University with a 2-0 victory. This secured their place as North America’s representative at the Red Bull Home Ground Main Event.
Road to EWC: Chess and StarCraft 2
A three-day, fully open chess tournament at DreamHack Dallas 2025 saw players who competed for a $20,000 prize pool, as well as flights and a hotel to Riyadh for the Last Chance Qualifiers, for a shot to play on the $1,5M Esports World Cup stage Qualifiers.
- First: Oleksandr Bortnyk
- Second: Alexey Sarana
- Third: Aravindh Chithambaram
- Fourth: Andrew Tang
Another three-day, open-format tournament was StarCraft 2, featuring players from around the world competing for a $50,000 prize pool and four qualification spots for the Esports World Cup. Qualified players included:
- First: Cho “Maru” Seong-ju
- Second: Kang “Solar” Min-soo
- Third – Fourth:
- Shin “SHIN” Hee-beom
- Kim “Classic” Doh-woo
Brawl Cup
The premiere official Brawl esports event in North America brought eight of the world’s top teams to Dallas, competing over three days to secure an additional World Finals or Last Chance Qualifier spot for their home region.
- HMBLE placed first and unlocked a World Finals Qualification Slot for EMEA
- SK Gaming placed second and unlocked a spot in the Last Chance Qualifiers for EMEA
- ZETA DIVISION placed third and unlocked a spot in the Last Chance for Qualifiers for East Asia
The GeoGuessr Major Hits the US Soil for the First Time Ever
The GeoGuessr Americas Major took place at DreamHack Dallas, where the top six players from the Americas competed for a share of the $17,500 prize pool. Results are as follows:
This victory solidifies Radu C’s position as one of the top GeoGuessr players in the Americas, following his strong performance in the World League earlier this year.
Expo Highlights
DreamHack’s Main Stage: Dungeons and Drag Queens, and more.
The Main Stage at DreamHack Dallas featured a range of gaming fandoms and celebrity guests throughout the weekend, including:
- TikTok stars A.J. & Big Justice took to the stage and hosted their BOOM or DOOM talent show.
- Dungeons and Dragons leveled up to Dungeons and Drag Queens, led by the Dungeon Master and comedian Paul Curry.
- The Overwatch 2 Stadium Showdown brought together top Overwatch creators and high-performing DreamHack attendees for a live competition, following open qualifiers held in the on-site Free Play area.
World of Warcraft: OnlyFang’s Live Raid
OnlyFangs, a WoW Classic Hardcore guild made up of top-tier content creators, brought the Hardcore grind to Dallas. Amid the excitement, TonkaTonk (Tyler1), who had previously fallen in battle, was resurrected when the WoW gods granted Tyler1 a one-day reprieve to join the OnlyFangs raid on Blackwing Lair.
Cosplay Takes Center Stage as DreamHack’s Most Iconic Characters Come to Life
DreamHack Dallas once again showcased the vibrant creativity of its community through its highly anticipated Cosplay Contest. Participants wowed the crowd with intricately crafted costumes inspired by video games, anime, and pop culture favorites.
For more images and assets from DreamHack Dallas, click HERE. For more information on ESL FACEIT Group, visit eslfaceitgroup.com and follow EFG on LinkedIn.
