The International 2023 - How To Watch, Schedule, Teams & More

The International 2023 (TI12) is the final tournament of the DPC (Dota Pro Circuit) Season and has historically been a spotlight event on the esports calendar in 2023. Hosted by Valve, the game's developer, the tournament has historically featured a prize pool of over $20 million, making it one of the world's largest and most prestigious esports events.

More specifically, The International Championship is a culmination of the DPC tours and Majors held throughout the year that determines the team most worthy to wield the prestigious Aegis of Champions. With the new Dota DPC Season in full swing, many fans are eager to learn more about The International 2023, including how to watch, schedule, competing teams, and more.

Update on 5 August 2023: We've revised this page to include details released by Valve concerning the event's schedule and format. We are also waiting for the Regional Qualifiers to start. Once these games begin, we will update the page with the qualifying teams as well.

How To Watch Dota 2 The International 2023

Like before, The International 2023 will be broadcast live on the Dota 2 TI Twitch channel and simulcast on the official Dota 2 YouTube channel. In addition, fans with the Dota 2 game installed on their PCs can watch the matches live on the in-game client under the "Watch" section.

When Does The International 2023 Start?

The International 2023 will take place at the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA in the United States from 12 October 2023 through 29 October 2023.

When Does The TI12 Regional Qualifiers Start?

The International 2023 Regional Qualifiers will run between 17 and 31 August. Like previous installments, there are six regional qualifiers, with teams competing for one of the available eight slots at TI12.

• North America and China: 17-21 August (1 slot each)
• South America and Eastern Europe: 22-26 August (2 slots for South America, 1 slot for Eastern Europe)
• Southeast Asia and Western Europe: 27-31 August (2 slots for Western Europe, 1 slot for Southeast Asia)

All Teams Competing At Dota 2 The International 2023

The International 2023 will host twenty of the world's top Dota 2 teams. This year will not feature a Last Chance Qualifier. Instead, the teams competing will comprise the top 12 teams in the DPC receiving direct invitations, with the remaining eight teams qualified comprising those from each of the six Regional Qualifiers.

Confirmed Teams

Here are all the confirmed teams competing at Dota 2 The International 2023 this year:

1. Team Liquid
2. Gaimin Gladiators
3. Tundra Esports
4. Evil Geniuses
5. 9Pandas
6. PSG.LGD
7. Shopify Rebellion
8. Talon Esports
9. Beastcoast
10. Team Spirit
11. TSM
12. BetBoom Team
13. TBD (Regional Qualifier)
14. TBD (Regional Qualifier)
15. TBD (Regional Qualifier)
16. TBD (Regional Qualifier)
17. TBD (Regional Qualifier)
18. TBD (Regional Qualifier)
19. TBD (Regional Qualifier)
20. TBD (Regional Qualifier)

Group Stage Seeding

Note: We will update this section once we know which teams have qualified for the event.

Dota 2 The International 2023 - Schedule & Format

This year, Valve has decided to adjust the format and scheduling for TI to enhance the viewing experience for its broad fan base.

Schedule

To enable more fans to enjoy the live competition, games will be scheduled predominantly over the weekend - from Friday through Sunday. With a tournament hosting twenty teams, it requires three weekends to accommodate all matches: one weekend for the Group Stage (October 12-15), another for the Playoffs (October 20-22), and the last for The Finals (October 27-29).

The Road to The International

To cater to first-time viewers, Valve has bifurcated The International 2023 into two phases with distinct titles:

• The Road To The International: Encompasses the Group Stage and Playoffs. This phase pits the top 20 Dota teams against each other, whittling them down to the final eight. Regular Dota viewers can relish the drama of the Group Stage and the live Playoffs.

• The International: This phase will spotlight the final eight teams vying for the Aegis of Champions at the Climate Pledge Arena from October 27 to 29. This stage includes the Lower Bracket Finals and culminates in the best-of-five Grand Finals.

Below is a simplified breakdown (thanks, Wykhrm Reddy via X)

Group Stage Format

This year witnesses a departure from the traditional Group Stage format. Instead of two groups of ten teams playing across four days, now there will be four groups of five teams competing over two days. The bottom team from each group gets eliminated.

Thus, each team will play four critical matches rather than the previous nine. The second half of the Group Stage will involve direct matches among the 16 remaining teams, determining the ones advancing to the Playoffs with Upper Bracket slots.

Playoffs

Kicking off on October 20th, the Playoffs will be held at the Seattle Convention Center’s Summit. Here, the top eight teams vie for the four Upper Bracket positions for The International. The subsequent days feature a series of elimination matches, with the four victors proceeding to the Lower Bracket of The International. All matches, diverging from past events, will be best-of-three.

The International

The final eight teams will compete at the Climate Pledge Arena from October 27th to 29th to ascertain the world's top team. The events on Friday and Saturday comprise four best-of-three matches daily. Sunday will host the climax, with the top three teams contending first in the Lower Bracket Finals and finally in the best-of-five Grand Finals.

How To Buy Tickets To Attend The International 2023

Tickets for both stages of the event, "The Road To The International's Playoff Stage" at The Seattle Convention Center’s Summit and "The International" at the Climate Pledge Arena, will be available in the latter half of August. We'll provide additional details as soon as we receive them.

Dota 2 The International 2023 - Prize Pool

This information is not yet available. We will update this section once details have been announced by Valve. However, it's worth mentioning that The International 2023 prize pool will not follow the same crowdfunding structure as previous events.

That said, it is reported that Valve will directly fund the prize pool, but the exact amount is yet to be revealed. Sources suggest that the developer will raise the base prize pool to $3 million with some other form (i.e., non-BattlePass) crowdfunding. This is yet to be confirmed, though.