Time to earn with 1xBet: cult Dota 2 tournament started
The International 2023, the main Dota 2 tournament, has started in Seattle, the USA, and will last from October 12 to October 29.
Press release.- The International 2023, the main Dota 2 tournament, has started in Seattle, the USA, and will last from October 12 to October 29. It has special significance for esports and is an unattainable benchmark for other industry disciplines. Today, we will tell you how The International and Dota 2 managed to take a dominant position and share business life hacks from 1xBet accepting bets on The International 2023.
Compendium, Battle Pass, and millions in prize money
The International was first held in 2011 in Cologne, Germany. Back then, the typical esports tournament prize pool amounted to thousands of dollars, so the $1,6m announced by the organizer, Valve, caused an unprecedented stir among esports players and fans. A year later, Valve, which is also the Dota 2 developer, repeated this experience, and in 2013, they implemented an unusual and, at the same time, brilliant idea – they increased the prize fund at the expense of the game’s fans.
Before The International 2013, the developers offered to buy a digital tournament guide – the so-called Compendium – for just $10. There, you could find all the information about the tournament qualifications and matches, make predictions on the outcomes, study player statistics, and much more. Thousands of fans took the unique offer, and 25 per cent of the cost was transferred to increase the prize pool. In the first year, the organizers raised $1,274,380, which was added to the usual $1,6 m. As a result, the international 2013 fund was $2,874,380!
Thanks to this scheme, The International 2014 prize pool grew to $11m which will only increase. In 2016, Valve offered to buy not the Compendium but the Battle Pass – a popular game monetization model with access to additional content. The players eagerly took the new opportunities and brought the same 25 per cent of the subscription to the winnings. The absolute record was set in 2021 – the best Dota 2 teams fought for $40m. The tournament winners received $18,2m in prize money, and even those who were never interested in esports learned about Dota 2.
In following years, several of Valve’s unsuccessful financial experiments led to a decrease in funding – $18,9m was collected at The International 2022. At International 2023, the prize money has returned to the 2013 level and will amount to $3m. Such a sharp drop in revenue from fans will certainly become a new challenge for Valve, and the company will try to come up with some solutions. Moreover, Dota 2 continues to break all records of popularity and brings in huge income.
The International 2023: format and participants
The annual Dota Pro Circuit competition cycle is traditionally divided into three seasons: winter, spring, and summer. The cycle ends with the final championship, The International, choosing the strongest Dota 2 squad.
Each season, teams compete in regional leagues: Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, and China. Major tournaments are held between seasons. They were Lima Major 2023, Berlin Major 2023, and Bali Major 2023 this year. For victories and high places in various contests, DPC points are awarded, based on which a global team rating is formed, allowing participation in following competitions.
The 12 best teams in the Dota Pro Circuit 2023 ranking qualified directly for The International 2023:
- Team Liquid 2150 DPC points
- Gaimin Gladiators 2140 DPC points
- Tundra Esports 1660 DPC points
- 9Pandas 1496 DPC points
- Evil Geniuses 1470 DPC points
- LGD Gaming 1284 DPC points
- Shopify Rebellion 1170 DPC points
- Talon Esports 1120 DPC points
- beastcoast 1040 DPC points
- Team Spirit 1020 DPC points
- TSM 900 DPC points
- BetBoom Team 760 DPC points
Another 8 teams qualified for The International 2023 based on the open regional qualifications results:
- nouns (North America)
- Keyd Stars (South America)
- Thunder Awaken (South America)
- Entity (Western Europe)
- PSG Quest (Western Europe)
- Virtus.pro (Eastern Europe)
- Azure Ray (China)
- Team SMG (Southeast Asia)
The International 2023 group stage will last from October 12 to 15. Twenty teams will be divided into 4 groups, and after facing each other in matches with the Best of 2 format, the 4 teams in the last places will leave the tournament. The remaining 16 participants play 8 Best of 3 games. The winners will advance to the playoff stage upper bracket, and the losers will go to the lower one.
The playoffs Best of 3 matches will last from October 20 to 22 and October 27 to 29 in the Double-Elimination format. The grand final will be held on October 29 according to the Best of 5 scheme. Whoever takes three maps first will become The International 2023 winner.
The International 2023 favourites
The International 2023 main favourite is the European team Gaimin Gladiators, where Anton “dyrachyo” Shkredov shines. The team won 6 out of 8 big tournaments this year, including all three majors. Being in such fantastic condition, the only thing the guys can lose is their nerves.
Next on the list is another European team, Team Liquid. The squad is in first place in Dota Pro Circuit 2023 with 2150 DPC points and is currently ahead of Gaimin Gladiators in the rankings. At the same time, during the season, they regularly lacked something before winning.
Team Liquid took 5-second places at 8 big tournaments and did not win once during the year. Such an offensive tendency can negatively affect the team morale or give it additional motivation. Team Liquid won The International in 2017 and reached the finals two years later.
Third place in the bookmaker’s lineups and the status of shadow favourite rightly goes to the experienced Team Spirit. The guys have an uneven season and occupy only 10th place in the Dota Pro Circuit 2023 ranking with 1020 DPC points. However, at the end of the season, Team Spirit won two tournaments at once – Riyadh Masters 2023 and DreamLeague Season 21, breaking the Gaimin Gladiators hold. Now, the team is in top condition and ready to take advantage of its main rivals’ mistakes.
Esports and 1xBet affiliate program
The global bookmaker 1xBet is actively developing esports, sponsoring tournaments and individual teams. The bookmaker is the partner of the famous OG Esports team, which won The International twice in 2018 and 2019, earning $11,2m and $15,6m!
1xBet has seen from its own experience that esports can bring impressive income for professional teams and everyone engaged in the media business on the Internet and can interest their audience. That is why 1xBet offers to benefit from the affiliate program with favourable terms to everyone who runs a news website, a popular page on social networks, a group in instant messengers, a blog, or YouTube channels.
Connecting to the 1xBet program guarantees partners up to 40 per cent lifetime commission from each attracted player. Regular promos and bonuses, access to a vast promo materials library, and personal manager support ensure the highest possible conversion rates.
1xBet partners can use more than 250 withdrawal methods to receive a commission, including Visa, MasterCard, popular payment services, e-wallets, and cryptocurrency.
The 1xBet program guarantees a personal approach to each partner. The company’s support service operates 24/7 and is available in the most popular languages. Each partner receives a personal manager who will help build a working marketing strategy and answer any questions.
