It’s Official: Sweden Will Host The International 2020
Published: Aug 29, 2019 - Last Updated: Oct 6, 2022
Following The International 2018, a lengthy period of time that elapsed before teams knew that Dota 2 The International 2019 tournament would take place in China.
This time around, though, there will be no such uncertainty. Valve quickly announced The International 2020 will take place at the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden.
This is, of course, the largest and richest esports tournament in the world annually. The decision to take it back to Europe, for the first time since 2011, is seen as a fitting way to celebrate its 10th birthday.
The International’s history
The first tournament The International 2011 took place a Kölnmesse in Cologne, Germany and was won by Ukrainian team Natus Vincere. But the prize pool for this tournament was just $1.6 million.
Read also: Esports betting sites in Germany.
In 2012, Valve moved the tournament for the first of six years in Seattle. The first two took place at the Benaroya Hall, the next four at the KeyArena. The decision to crowdfund the prize pool at the tournament through the “Compendium” battle pass purchases also transformed the fortunes of The International and turned it into an esports behemoth.
From 2012 through to the final year in Seattle in 2017, the prize money on offer swelled from $1.6 million, up to a world record beating $24,787,916 in 2017. By this point, every new Dota 2 The International Tournament was setting a new world record for the largest prize pool on offer at an esports event.
That trend continued at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver in 2018, when the prize pool topped $25 million and this year in Shanghai, it swelled even further to a massive $34.3 million. This shattered the shirt-lived $30m record held by the 2019 Fortnite World Cup as the largest prize pool in esports history.
The likelihood is that this record will be shattered once again when the qualifiers convene in Sweden for The International 2020 next year.
Once again, teams will be able to qualify directly for The International 2020 via the Dota Pro Circuit, as well as a number of other regional qualifying tournaments.
The International 2020 is a marquee betting event
As one of the most prestigious tournaments in the world, The International also generates plenty of interest in esports betting on the event with providers such as Betway and Bet365 offering a wide range of different markets on the tournament itself (read also Betway bets and Bet365 betting site), and also on a massive selection of qualifiers that take place throughout the year, including the Dota Pro Circuit Minor and Major events.
Would you be willing to back OG to win a third The International tournament in a row? Or do you think another team will come to the fore to lift the top prize, and millions of dollars in prize money, in Stockholm next year?
Don’t forget to have also a look at our Dota betting sites section and esports odds for all our esports tournaments.
Since: August 10, 2015
