Did Na'vi win TI2?
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Executive summary
Natus Vincere (Na'Vi) did not win The International 2012 (TI2); Invictus Gaming defeated the defending champions Natus Vincere 3–1 in the TI2 grand final held at Benaroya Hall in Seattle, with Invictus taking the US$1 million first prize from a US$1.6 million pool [1] [2]. Contemporary lists of TI winners and historical summaries confirm Invictus Gaming as TI2 champions and show Na'Vi were the previous year’s TI1 winners who finished runners-up at TI2 [1] [2].
1. What happened at TI2: the final and the scoreline
The International 2012 final was a China-vs.-Ukraine rematch of TI1’s top teams: Invictus Gaming beat Natus Vincere 3–1 to claim the TI2 title. Reporting that aggregates TI winners lists identifies Invictus Gaming’s roster — ChuaN, YYF, Ferrari_430, Faith, and Zhou — as the champions of TI2, and explicitly states they defeated Natus Vincere in the final [1].
2. Prize money and setting: why TI2 mattered
TI2 was held at Benaroya Hall in Seattle with a total prize pool of US$1.6 million and a US$1 million first-place prize awarded to Invictus Gaming; those figures underline how quickly The International had scaled into a landmark esports event even by its second year [1] [2].
3. Na'Vi’s place in TI history: champions then finalists
Natus Vincere entered TI2 as the defending champions from TI1 and made it back to the grand final, but fell short of repeating. Sources frame Na'Vi’s TI1 victory and TI2 runner-up finish as part of their early legacy in Dota 2 history [1] [2].
4. Rosters and names you should remember
The widely cited TI2 champions roster for Invictus Gaming includes ChuaN, YYF, Ferrari_430, Faith, and Zhou; the sources use these names when listing TI2 winners and attributing the victory over Na'Vi [1]. Available sources do not provide the full Na'Vi TI2 roster within the supplied snippets; see original tournament records for match-by-match lineups (not found in current reporting).
5. How later summaries treat TI2
Later retrospectives and encyclopedia-style entries on The International list Invictus Gaming as the TI2 winners and repeat the outcome that Na'Vi lost the final 3–1; those summaries also position TI2 as the event that confirmed The International’s rapid growth in significance and prize-pool scale [1] [2].
6. Common confusion and how to avoid it
Confusion often arises because Na'Vi (Natus Vincere) were TI1 winners and high-profile players in early Dota 2 — that prominence makes it easy to conflate TI1 victory with later tournaments. Authoritative winner lists and historical articles clearly separate TI1 champions (Na'Vi) from TI2 champions (Invictus Gaming) and show Na'Vi placed second in TI2 [1] [2].
7. Limitations and where to look next
This analysis relies on the supplied sources that list TI winners and historical overviews; they establish the TI2 winner and the final scoreline [1] [2]. For match-by-match details, full Na'Vi TI2 roster listings, or primary contemporary reporting (player interviews, VODs, game statistics), consult tournament archives, Liquipedia match pages, and Valve’s official TI2 materials — those specific documents are not included in the current set of sources (not found in current reporting).