Dota 2 ESL Pro Tour – New Structure Revealed
For the past few years, the Dota Pro Circuit structure has been the face of competitive Dota. In 2023, that’s all changing with the announcement of the Dota 2 ESL Pro Tour. Read on to learn more about this massively anticipated change to one of the most popular esports.
Dota 2 ESL Pro Tour – ‘One Tour, One Story’
For those unaware, ESL host a number of Pro Tours, such as those for CSGO and StarCraft II. In addition, they have always been remarkably active in Dota 2, besides the primary organizer of Dota 2 tournaments being Valve.
Working together with Intel, the newly revealed ESL Pro Tour will feature seasons of DreamLeague events. At these events, only the best Dota 2 teams in the world will compete at these events.
Specifically, here’s how regional seeding for each DreamLeague season works, and may change with time:
- Western Europe: 5 teams
- Eastern Europe: 2 teams
- North America: 3 teams
- South America: 2 teams
- Southeast Asia: 2 teams
- China: 2 teams
Kicking off with an online stage, lasting two weeks and hosted at ESL’s Stockholm Studios, all teams will compete in European boot camps. Deciding which teams earn a spot in the DreamLeague Season will involve referencing the newly released ESL Pro Tour Ranking System. In general, this ranking is closely related to the Dota Pro Circuit!
Each season of DreamLeague features $1,000,000 in total prize pool. In addition, the very best teams will qualify for the Group Stage of the EPT Championship event to conclude the season.
With all this excitement brewing, here are the dates relating to the first season of the ESL Pro Tour for Dota 2:
- DreamLeague Season 19: April 9-23, 2023 (1 seed qualifies for Riyadh Masters)
- DreamLeague Season 20: June 7-25, 2023 (2 seeds qualify for Riyadh Masters)
- Riyadh Masters 2023: July 17-30, 2023
These dates will be essential for anyone wanting to learn how to bet on Dota 2 as a beginner this year!
Riyadh Masters 2023 – $15,000,000 Prize Pool
Namely, a World Champion will be crowned at Riyadh Masters at Gamers8 this year, with a staggering $15,000,000 of prize pool on the line.
This live EPT Championship event looks to rock the competitive Dota scene. Besides the three qualified teams from DreamLeague, average placings will help determine the remaining 17 teams.
Once determined, teams will fight through a Play-in to earn a spot in the Group Stage of this post-season event.
As an incredible Dota 2 betting opportunity, this event looks to broadcast on YouTube and Twitch as another event, besides The International, which looks to bring the international community together to celebrate Dota 2 esports.
In conclusion, the Dota 2 ESL Pro Tour promises an incredible season packed with exciting action which looks to fill the gaps between Dota 2 Majors and DPC, while also breathing new life into the DreamLeague.