Dota 2’s most prestigious tournament, The International, will return in September. Valve has sent out six invitations to teams that will skip the regional qualifiers and guarantee a seat at Ti13.
In a blog post, Valve has revealed the first batch of participants at The International 2024:
Team Spirit
- Illya “Yatoro” Mulyarchuk
- Denis “Larl” Sigitov
- Magomed “Collapse” Khalilov
- Myroslav “Mira” Kolpakov
- Yaroslav “Miposhka” Naidenov
Xtreme Gaming
- Wang “Ame” Chunyu
- Guo “Xm” Hongcheng
- Lin “Xxs” Jing
- Zhao “XinQ” Zixing
- Ding “Dy” Cong
Team Falcons
- Oliver “skiter” Lepko
- Stanislav “Malr1ne” Potorak
- Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf
- Andreas “Cr1t-” Nielsen
- Wu “Sneyking” Jingjun
Team Liquid
- Michael “miCKe” Vu
- Michał “Nisha” Jankowski
- Neta “33” Shapira
- Samuel “Boxi” Svahn
- Aydin “Insania” Sarkohi
Gaimin Gladiators
- Anton “dyrachyo” Shkredov
- Quinn “Quinn” Callahan
- Marcus “Ace” Hoelgaard
- Erik “tOfu” Engel
- Melchior “Seleri” Hillenkamp
BetBoom Team
- Egor “Nightfall” Grigorenko
- Danil “gpk” Skutin
- Matvey “MieRo`” Vasyunin
- Vitalie “Save-” Melnic
- Alexander “TORONTOTOKYO” Khertek
It is unclear how Valve determined these invitations, as they previously used the DPC circuit to figure out the best teams of the year. However, nobody should be able to complain about these six teams, and they have proved to be the cream of the crop in the current Dota 2 scene.
Team Spirit, Xtreme Gaming, and most notably, Team Falcons, have won most of the tournaments played in the year, while the other three are consistently making deep runs in the same events.
Three internationals in a row for @teamliquiddota. Consistency is often under looked but so proud of getting the invite, now it’s time for us to earn it. Congrats to the other teams invited and gl to some spicy ass qualifiers
— Blitzstopher (@Blitz_DotA) May 27, 2024
Valve has also revealed that The International 2024 will be a 16-team tournament. Unlike the previous years, there will be no Wildcard or Last Chance Qualifier system at this event.
The remaining participants must go through regional qualifiers to join the invited teams. Details of the Ti13 qualifiers are as follows:
North America
- 1 slot
- June 9th to 13th
- Shopify Rebellion, Nouns, La Correntada, and 5 more teams from Open Qualifiers
The North American region has been looking extremely weak, which is why Valve has only given the region a singular slot. The representative will likely be Shopify Rebellion or Nouns, as these two teams do not have other competitors in the region.
China
- 2 slots
- June 9th to 13th
- Azure Ray, G2.iG, LGD Gaming, Team Bright, Team Zero, Dark Horse, and 6 more teams from Open Qualifiers
We can expect to see a bloodbath happening in the Chinese qualifiers. The three favorites are Azure Ray, G2.iG, and LGD Gaming. However, only two teams can make it through. Dark horses like Team Bright and Team Zero might cause a few upsets, though.
Eastern Europe
- 1 slot
- June 14th to 18th
- Natus Vincere, Virtus.pro, 1win, L1GA TEAM, Night Pulse, Nemiga Gaming, One Move, Yellow Submarine, 9Pandas, and 3 more teams from Open Qualifiers
Eastern Europe is a very prominent region, but only has one available slot, likely because Team Spirit and the BetBoom Team have already been invited. Either Natus Vincere, Virtus.pro, or 1win should make it out alive.
South America
- 2 slots
- June 14th to 18th
- HEROIC, beastcoast, BOOM Esports, Midas Club, Infinity, Leviatan, and 6 more teams from Open Qualifiers
Valve has again provided two slots for the South American region, despite it being one of the weakest regions in the world. However, HEROIC and BOOM Esports could potentially put up a decent fight against international teams.
Southeast Asia
- 2 slots
- June 19th to 23rd
- Aurora, Blacklist International, Talon Esports, Neon Esports, Execration, Bleed Esports, MANTA Esports, Salvation Gaming, and 4 more teams from Open Qualifiers
Aurora is easily the strongest team in the region, so we should expect 23savage and the team to qualify for The International. The remaining slot should be claimed by Blacklist International, but Talon Esports or Bleed Esports could snatch it away.
Western Europe
- 2 slots
- June 19th to 23rd
- Tundra Esports, PSG Quest, OG, Team Secret, Entity, MOUZ, NAVI Junior, Nigma Galaxy, Rest Farmers, JustBetter, and 2 more teams from Open Qualifiers
The most competitive region just got tougher. The Western Europe qualifiers will also take in teams from the MENA region, so PSG Quest and Nigma Galaxy will compete here. There are so many good teams in the qualifier, but OG and Tundra should make it out.
According to Valve, ticket sales for The International will go live on June 10. The event is scheduled to run from September 4th to 15th and take place in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Header: Valve
