Ti11 will likely feature a lower prize pool than any of previous years. Prize funds for this event have grown and grown, regularly setting new records. Dota 2′ premier event is still unbeaten industry-wide in terms of financial earnings. However, this year’s Battle Pass and crowdfunding are moving at a slower pace than expected, and the prize pool seems to reflect it.
Dota 2’s International is the premier event for the game. This is the culmination of the entire competitive scene, finding the best team out of the whole game. We had mind numbingly high prize pools up until last year, with record setting numbers year upon year. All prize pools up until TI10, reflect this.
Throughout its history, The International’s prize pool has grown bigger and bigger, reaching the ~$40 million mark last year. While the game’s player base and popularity has grown, it hasn’t exactly kept pace with the inflating prize pool. This is slightly worrying considering the way in which the International 2022 prize pool is raised. This is how it has grown over the years:
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- The International 1: $1.6 million
- The International 2: $1.6 million
- The International 3: $2.8 million
- The International 4: $10.9 million
- The International 5: $18.4 million
- The International 6: $20.7 million
- The International 7: $24.7 million
- The International 8: $25.5 million
- The International 9: $34.3 million
- The International 10: $40 million
- The International 11: $11 million (September 16th, 2022)
The International prize pool compared to other games
Other highly successful esports, such as League of Legends, are much bigger than Dota 2 and yet they don’t worry about not having astronomical TI10 prize pool-sized awards for their World Championships. In 2022, the League of Legends World Championship has a prize pool of ~$2.25 million. That’s 18 times less than The International 2021, even though the game has 10 times more players (100+ million). This gap is growing too, the International was only 5x the LoL prize pool in 2017.
Dota 2’s huge prize pool concentrates all of the spoils for the games at the very top. While it’s natural that the top teams command the biggest prizes, the difference is becoming shocking. Smaller Dota 2 communities and competitive scenes are having some major trouble in keeping the cash flowing for teams to stay active. It is clear that competitive Dota 2 below the top tier is in need of help.
The International and its top tier can’t be maintained without the wider esports structure. The International itself would lose significant prestige and impact without a wider community. So why does Valve continue to neglect every portion of the league outside of it? It probably has something to do with how much they themselves make from crowdfunding the prize pool for the event. However, the long-term effects of continuing to neglect smaller Dota is going to cause problems.Dota 2’s biggest tournament is right around the corner, so make sure you check out our Dota 2 betting page where you can find all the best sign up offers and free bets available.
