The International remains the most lucrative e-sports tournament for at least another year, with a prize pool that grew to more than $30 million over the weekend.
Dota 2 tournament The International 2019 surpasses $30 million prize pool, topping Fortnite
There are some very lucrative e-sports tournaments this summer
There are some very lucrative e-sports tournaments this summer
Photo courtesy Valve.
is an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories.
Valve’s massive Dota 2 tournament, which is heading into its ninth annual iteration, features a prize pool that’s largely crowdfunded, a tradition dating back to 2013. Back in May, Valve released a “battle pass” for the game, which is available at different tiers and earns players special features like rare in-game cosmetics and special limited events. A quarter of that money is used to fill out the prize pool for Dota 2’s biggest tournament of the year. Last year’s event, which took place in Vancouver, featured a then-record $25.5 million purse.
The $30 million milestone is particularly notable because it helps The International remain the biggest e-sports event on the planet — at least in terms of prize money, despite a very aggressive new competitor. Last year, Epic earmarked $100 million to help turn Fortnite into a viable competitive game, and that included a $30 million prize pool for the upcoming Fortnite World Cup, which takes place in New York from July 26th–28th.
The International 2019, meanwhile, kicks off on August 20th in Shanghai.
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