Dota 2 tournaments have an official circuit every year, with more unique events dotted between. Valve, the owners of the Steam digital distribution platform, are very involved with the game’s esports. However, no where near as involved as Riot Games is with LoL.
The Dota 2 tournament circuit largely consists of the DPC (Dota Pro Circuit). This is the league that connects major events together. Ultimately, it determines a large amount of qualifications to TI (The International). Valve does a lot of work with TI by helping boost the prize pool using a Battle Pass/Compendium system. A portion of sales goes towards the largest tournament’s prize pool. Valve also funds the production for major events for Tournament Operators who are successful in their bid to run the tournaments.
What are the biggest Dota 2 tournaments?
TI is one of the largest tournaments on the esports calendar for all games. It has had record breaking individual prize pools exceeding $40,000,000. The scale of the tournament also makes it a major attraction for any Dota 2 bettors since that’s where the biggest games are happening.
Due to the length of time that it runs throughout the year, Dota 2 betting is most popular for the DPC. Between and after the Winter Tour, Spring Tour and Summer Tour there are major events where teams can collect DPC points. The teams with the most DPC points at the end of all seasons will then qualify for The International.
Here’s an example of 2023 Major events:
- Lima Major 2023
- ESL One Berlin Major 2023
- Bali Major 2023
Other large tournaments for Dota 2 are often hosted by DreamLeague and more recently Gamers8. Gamers8 is a large event based in Saudi Arabia which is starting to boast prize pools rivalling that of The International.
What are the best Dota 2 events to bet on?
If you are looking for an esports series with regularity in matches played, it’s worth taking a look at the DPC. The DPC covers multiple regions as well as 2 tiers of play. Tier 2 of the DPC are aiming to qualify to Tier 1. Tier 1 are competing for larger prize pools and qualifications. Building a fluency in team and event knowledge will help you place intelligent bets more consistently.
Due to there being so many different regions, you could easily aim to specialise in a single region. If you want to place larger bets at Major events then you will need a core understanding of all region’s top teams. You will also want to keep an eye on the regular player transfers that happen between teams. The Dota 2 scene is notorious for having ‘the shuffle’ after every TI, this will often build the storyline for the next year of events. Keep an eye on Dota 2 news for updates on this.
Who are the Dota 2 teams and players to look out for?
Like all games, Dota 2 tournaments have the regular teams and players that fans are most excited to watch. Due to the game being around for a long time, there are some personalities who have grown up in the scene for well over a decade. Here are some highly influential players and their respective teams you need to watch out for.
- Clement ‘Puppey’ Ivanov – Legendary Estonian player who leads Team Secret. Won the first ever TI with Na’Vi back in 2011
- John ‘N0tail’ Sundstein – Danish two time winner of The International. Founder of team OG alongside Ceb. Player with a rich history of the game and also one of the highest earners in Dota 2.
- Syed ‘Sumail’ Hassan – A Pakistani and American professional player currently playing for Team Aster. Came onto the professional scene when he was 15 years old and won TI in 2015 as a member of Evil Geniuses (EG).
- Danil ‘Dendi’ Ishutin – A Ukrainian player who has previously been the ‘face of Dota 2’. An incredible personality who won The International 2011 with Puppey. Well known for playing Pudge exceptionally.
- Topias ‘Topson’ Miikka Taavitsainen – Finnish player who became a professional Dota 2 player only shortly before winning his first TI back in 2018. Then went onto winning his second TI in 2019. Rarely seen hidden talent who quickly became a force to be reckoned with.
There are a number of other legendary players in the scene. However, these are among the most well known and exciting players. At EsportsCompare.net we highly recommend learning more about individual player profiles if you are looking to make intelligent and well informed bets.
