It was basically only a matter of time, but this year’s Dota 2 main tournament, The International, has surpassed last year’s total of $24,787,916 and has officially become the biggest prize pool ever for an eSports event. For those unaware, this prize pool is funded by the viewers, with a mere $1,600,000 contributed by Valve. Fans of Dota 2 can buy the in-game Compendium and related items to add to the prize pool. Each year the prize pool grows, though it did take this one longer than usual to get to this point.

Speaking of The International, the main event starts today! At 1:30 PM EDT, Team Liquid (aka future back-to-back champs) and USA’s own OpTic Gaming will kick off on the main stage in Vancouver, Canada for a chance at the over 11 million dollar grand prize. Tune into Twitch to catch all the excitement, culminating on in the grand finals this weekend! 

The biggest eSports prize pool is up for grabs starting today screenshot

Read more…

Source: Destructoid The biggest eSports prize pool is up for grabs starting today