The International. Dota 2 tournament overview

The International (TI) tournament is the Dota 2 World Championship, an annual event hosted by Valve.

TI is organized by

The inaugural tournament in 2011 featured 16 teams. The number of participants remained the same until 2017, with 18 eSports clubs competing in that tournament.

Initially, Valve itself invited high-profile teams to participate in the tournament. However, this approach was met with criticism from the public: users felt that weak teams became participants, strong teams were ignored, and the organisation of the game was rather incomprehensible.

The system was reformed in 2017. The organisers introduced a Dota Pro Circuit scoring order. By competing in majors and minors, teams would earn points and at the end of the season they would be ranked in the standings. The competition leaders were directly invited by Valve to participate in the tournament.

The final round of TI begins with group competitions, at the end of which teams are placed into grids. After this, the competition between rosters is played in a two-team system. After two defeats, the team is eliminated from the tournament and the winners move on to the next round. The final competition is organised in a separate arena and can be watched by the spectators.

Players from Europe, CIS, PRC, SEA, North and South America participate in the tournament.

Prize money

In the first competition in 2011 the organizers offered a prize fund of $1.6 million to the players. $1 million was paid for the first place. Such a large amount of money attracted people from all over the world to the tournament. Valve rapidly increased the interest of spectators and players in their competitions.

Since 2013, community members can change the level of prizes. A portion of the funds is collected from the sale of the Combat Pass. 25% of the content goes into the tournament budget.

The main TI prize is the Aegis of Champions. It’s a famous bronze and silver shield-shaped trophy, with a depiction of the battle between Darkness and Light on its surface and handles on the back for the winners to grasp and lift the trophy above their heads. Special rings are also given to the leading team.

A brief chronology of the tournaments

In 2011, the first TI with 16 squads took place in Cologne.
In 2012 TI was held in Seattle with 14 clubs participating. Two teams were able to qualify for the tournament through regional qualifications.
In 2013, the prize system was changed to $2.8 million. 13 teams received direct bids and the online qualification draw affected two places.
In 2014, the publisher reduced the direct offers and invited 11 teams. The other places were allocated to qualifications.
In 2015, 10 teams received direct offers to participate in the tournament and 3 majors were held. If the athletes changed, the team was deprived of a direct offer, but had a chance to qualify.
In 2016, six teams received direct offers and the fund amounted to $20 million.
In 2017, the number of participants was 18 teams. The DPC system began to be applied to create the grid.
In 2018, the 8 teams with the highest DPC ranking received direct offers, the other line-ups were selected through qualification.
In 2019, 12 rosters with the maximum DPC ranking received direct bids, with a further 6 places allocated through regional qualifications.
In 2020, the tournament was cancelled due to a coronavirus infection.