Before raising your question or concerns, please have a look here first:

If you have a question that is not included in this FAQ, and you can't find your answer in the General League Rules either, write a support ticket to the administration!

Registration



Our Signup Guide gives an overview of which steps to take to sign up your team.

When can I sign-up for joinDOTA League?
Signing up is only possible for a certain period in between two seasons. Watch out for announcements on joinDOTA.com to make sure you don't miss it. At the moment, jDL is set to run in a four months rythm with sign-ups in January/ February, May/ June, and September/ October.

What are the requirements for signing up?
You need to be logged in to the website with your gamesports network account and have your steam id entered as a gameaccount. Furthermore you need to be inside a league team with at least five members. If you are the leader or a captain of the team, you can sign up the team. Four more team members then must also confirm the participation for your team within the league

How do I find my steam id?
A fast and easy way is to enter your profile URL on steamidfinder and copy the result. Please enter the steamID (not steamID3 or steamID64). It looks like steam_0:0:123456.

My Steam ID is already in use.
In most cases like this, your Steam ID has been used by yourself on a previous account. Check up, if you already have a different GameSports user account, keeping in mind that those exist across multiple websites. Either use this other account for the league or remove the game account from it to solve the problem. If you need further assistance, submit a support ticket.

I want to change my steam ID. What can I do?
If you want to change your steam ID on our website, please write a support ticket and explain why you need it to get changed. An admin will then have look at the situation.

I'd like to play, but I don't have a team
Have a look into our Forums to search for team members.



Divisions & Groups



How does the new format work? We explain it here.
You can also find more details of how the Calibration Phase works specifically here.

How many divisions are there and what do they mean?
Depending on the league (Europe, America, or Asia) and the season, there are four to five different divisions. The best teams are in the Premier Division, the next best in Division 2 and so forth. The lowest division is (depending on the league) 4, 5, or 6. Each of these divisions have up to three sub-divisions: Upper, Middle and Lower.

How is my division determined?
You will be seeded into a sub-division based on your result in the previous season and the Calibration Phase of the current season. By default you stay in the same sub-division as before, but the best teams of each group may get promoted, while those placed on the bottom may get relegated. The exact outcome for each position can be found in the score table on the group page. Teams who participate in the Calibration Phase may be placed higher than in the previous season, depending on their performance during the Calibration Phase. Teams who did not participate in the previous season or in the Calibration Phase will be seeded into the Starter Division.

How can I get into a higher division quicker?
Forcing a really strong team to slowly climb up division by division is neither a great experience for this team, nor for its opponents. Therefore we offer participants like this to reach a high division faster with the Calibration Phase - a two day competition at the beginning of a season that lets the winners start in a high division (currently up to Division 2) right away. In rare exceptions we also directly seed known teams based on results in external competitions.

Can failing in Calibration Phase get me demoted?
No. The worst thing that can happen is nothing. If you get far in these playoffs, you can get a promotion / start in a higher division. If you drop out early, you'll start in the same division as if you had not played them.

How many phases are there and how do they work?
Starting at Season 15 there will be three phases (as opposed to 2 before). Each phase is a small groupstage with groups of 3-4 teams. After each phase, depending on your performance, you can get promoted or relegated to another sub-division. This allows you to calibrate to your skill level much faster than before.



Regions



Which countries and continents does jDL include?
Simple answer: All of them. To avoid heavy timezone and server issues, we have split joinDOTA League up into three completely seperate leagues though:
a) jDL Europe (Luxembourg default server) for Europe, Africa, and the Middle East
b) jDL Asia (Singapore default server) for the rest of Asia and Oceania
c) jDL America (US East default server) for North, South, and Central America

I'm not sure which league my team belongs in.
It's ultimately your own choice then. Simply select the league in which your expect the least issues in meeting the hosting and scheduling rules.



Scheduling and Playing Matches



We have a match guide, which explains all the important features. Check it out!

When are matches played? Are the playdays mandatory?
There are no mandatory dates to have jDL matches played. However, we provide a default time for each match that will be used if neither team is active to find a new match date. We encourage teams to talk to each other and find a date and time that fits everyone involved well. Some restrictions on this are elaborated in the General League Rules, but most importantly keep in mind: If you're proactive in looking for a good playtime together with your opponents, you'll most certainly find one.

How do I contact my opponents?
You can use the scheduling tool on the match page to signal your opponent that you're active and want to play. You may also use the comment section of a match page to discuss any matters. It's important to use the tools on our website however. Communication via other platforms will not be accepted as evidence in general.

The opponents are not responding. What to do?
First of all suggest a match date using the scheduling tool on the match page early on. If there is no response from them within 48 hours, your suggested match date will be the new official date as well. If the opposite team is entirely inactive, you may claim a default win 15 minutes after the (new) official match date.

Who hosts the games? Do we need an admin?
The team shown first on the match page is supposed to host and post the password and lobby details in the hosting tool.

What do I need to do before a match?
Before each match the leader or a captain of each team has to select a roster from the team members and up to two standins. Afterwards each of the player has to confirm the participation (check-in) for the particular match. Only then the match can be played. If a team fails to check-in, it will receive a default loss. In case there are technical issues with the check-in, please write a support ticket.

What can we do about problems inside a match?
If you run into issues while playing, try to solve them by yourselves as good as you can. That involves knowing and applying the League Rules as well as basic human communication between both teams to find a fair solution. If you submit a support ticket and wait for admin interference, we cannot promise to get involved in time - with matches going on every day around the clock, a permanent live support can unfortunately not be provided. If absolutely no solution can be obtained within a reasonable timeframe, you may cancel the match and await admin instructions within the next few days - however in most cases it is highly recommended to finish the match and then have it investigated afterwards.



Streaming



How can I watch joinDOTA League?
While there is no official broadcast for most matches, we still provide Premier Division and Division 2 matches for you to follow in two ways: Either check out DotaTV and look for the current season in the list of leagues, or browse through the matchticker to find current matches with videostreams attached to them. If you want to watch lower division matches, you should try to get in touch with the involved teams directly.

How can I stream/cast joinDOTA League?
joinDOTA League is free for everyone to stream and commentate. If you want to broadcast matches in low divisions, all you need is the approval of the two teams. As for the Premier Division and Division 2, please submit a support ticket, if you'd like to be included in this.