The International is Underway

The preliminaries have kicked off in Seattle, hailing the start of the The Dota 2 International. Hosted by Valve every year, The International 2016 is the premiere Dota 2 tournament, with 16 teams from around the world vying to reach the apex spot and assert their place as the best in the world.

Along with the top dog position comes the lion’s share of its record-shattering prize pool. Having set the record each consecutive year, Dota 2 has raised the bar higher this year, with the total prize amounting to $19,456,177. Valve contributes just $1,600,000 of the cash prize, so the large majority of it has be generated by the community.

Today’s event is the Wild Card event, with four teams looking to prove they deserve the two slots left in the main tournament through double elimination. CompLexity, EHome, Escape and Excration are facing off in Swiss rounds so they can continue on to the main event. Best of luck to all teams, and may the best five win.