The annual Dota 2 championship tournament, known as The International, is no longer taking place in Stockholm, where it had been scheduled for since 2020.
The tenth tournament, The International 10, had already been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and had been rescheduled for this August.
As reported in PC Gamer however, the Dota 2 tournament is no longer able to take place in Stockholm as the Swedish government has refused to classify The International as an “elite sporting event”.
In an update from Valve earlier this week, it said that without this classification, it’s possible that players will be refused entry to Sweden due to COVID restrictions.
“The absence of this official recognition 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”, read the statement.
Although Valve had said it was looking for a last-minute agreement exploring alternative host cities in Europe, yesterday (June 24) the Swedish Esports Association confirmed that that Valve has decided to relocate the event.
UPPDATERING: Vi har nu fått kontakt med Valve som meddelar att de inte kommer fullfölja planerna med The International i Stockholm.
Mer information kommer.
— E-sportförbundet (@esportforbundet) June 24, 2021
Earlier that day, the organisation had actually published its own proposal. “To save The International, the competition needs to be sanctioned through the sports movement and by international federations and that a dialogue will begin as soon as possible with the organizer Valve,” the statement read (via Google Translate).
“The union has sent several messages directly to the organizer and via the Swedish professional teams and other esports organizations. We hope to be able to create the conditions needed to change the status of the competition and be able to initiate a dialogue with the organizers that allows The International to be implemented in Stockholm.”
Valve has not yet updated on the situation, and complications with finding another host city with just over a month The International 10 is set to begin could result in a further postponement.
It’s not all bad news for Dota 2 fans however. Earlier this week, a new summer event for the MOBA was announced called Nemestice, and began yesterday (June 24).
The post ‘Dota 2”s The International tournament no longer happening in Stockholm appeared first on NME.
