Esports tournament organiser ESL has announced that one of next year’s Dota 2 ESL One events will take place in Birmingham, England.
The Intel-backed tournament will take place from the 22nd to 28th April 2024 and is set feature a $1m (~£797,000) prize pool.
Part of the Dota 2 ESL Pro Tour (EPT), ESL One Birmingham will feature 12 teams. These spots will be taken up by the top four from the EPT leaderboard, with an additional eight qualifying through open and closed qualifiers taking place in January.
The 12 teams will be split into two six-team groups. The top four sides from each group will head to the playoffs, taking place in Birmingham’s 15,700-capacity Resorts World Arena. Overall, 22,520 EPT leaderboard ranking points will be awarded throughout the event.
In a release, ESL announced the tournament’s theme — Time to Brawl — with the company claiming that it ‘encapsulates Birmingham’s pub culture’ whilst also paying homage to the competition’s previous editions in the city.
ESL One Birmingham 2024 will mark the third occasion that ESL has taken Dota 2 to the city; however, this is the first time in several years. Previously holding majors in 2018 and 2019, Birmingham was also set to host a 2020 edition before it was ultimately moved online as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dota 2’s return to the UK follows a trend of major esports events in the country following large Apex Legends, Call of Duty: Warzone, and League of Legends tournaments in recent years. Next year the country will also host the 2024 LoL World Championship final, BLAST Premier Spring Final and PUBG Mobile’s Global Championship.
Shane Clarke, Director Game Ecosystems – Dota 2 at ESL FACEIT Group, commented: “The Dota 2 community, especially in the UK, has truly proven itself for being fun-loving, engaged with the show, and not afraid to get involved.
“Bringing live Dota 2 to Birmingham once again, we are therefore thrilled to create more memorable and electrifying moments for fans, not just for those uniting at the Resorts World Arena next April, but also for those joining us from their homes around the globe.”
