The International 10: Valve is looking for a new location

The International 10: Valve is looking for a new location
posted by Funk1ll3r,
Valve released a blog post on Tuesday announcing the search for a new location for The International 10. The biggest Dota 2 event of the year was supposed to take place in Sweden starting August 5, but it seems like this won't be possible anymore. "We started working with Sweden back in 2019 to get everything in place to hold TI10 there in 2020. When the global pandemic necessitated a postponement, we doubled our efforts to work in tandem with officials there to make sure we provided them with everything they needed to make this a safe and successful event for everyone," Valve explains at the beginning of the blog post.

Despite continuous reassurements over the course of the last year that The International qualified for the same exemptions other elite sporting events there received, Valve was informed just two weeks ago that esports won't be accepted into the sports federation due to a vote by the Swedish Sports Federation.

This means that "anyone attempting to procure a visa for travel into Sweden for TI10 (including players, talent, and staff) would be denied. The absence of this official recognition also means individual border agents would be making decisions about entry for those traveling to the event from countries outside the EU who do not typically need a visa to enter Sweden," Valve outlined in their statement.



The company tried to appeal the decision by approaching the Swedish government, but hasn't been successful so far. "As a result, and in light of the current political situation in Sweden, we have started looking for possible alternatives elsewhere in Europe to host the event this year, in case the Swedish government is unable to accommodate The International - Dota 2 Championships as planned."

Valve is confident they'll be able to find a solution so The International 10 can take place in Europe this year while still being safe for everyone involved. Fans should expect an updated plan "in the very near future."

The Regional Qualifiers determining the last six participants are still set to start on June 23. Fans should also look forward to the all-new summer event Nemestice which will release later this week.



Where should The International 10 take place after the recent developments?



Photo credit: Valve

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