ESL announces Dota 2 major in Los Angeles for March 2020

The United States is now set to host its first Dota 2 major since 2016.

ESL has announced that it will be running the third Dota Pro Circuit major of the 2019-2020 season. The tournament will take place in Los Angeles, California and will be part of the ESL One event series. The news was revealed in a humorous trailer that highlighted the city’s memorable locales.

The event will run from March 14 to 22, though the trailer suggests that the live portion of the tournament will only run from March 20 to 22 at the Shrine Auditorium. The qualifiers are scheduled to run from February 6 to 14.

As with other majors, the event will feature a $1 million prize pool and 15,000 qualifying points towards a spot in The International 2020. Details regarding the event’s accompanying minor were not revealed.

The event is undoubtedly welcome news to American Dota 2 fans who have been underserved by Valve and tournament organizers over recent years.

Dota 2 majors returns to USA for first time since Boston

Though the Dota Pro Circuit has standardized the Dota 2 pro scene, it has come at the direct expense of North American Dota 2 fans. A number of prominent events have taken place in the United States and Canada during the game’s history, but the shrinking of the event schedule saw most notable tournaments move to Europe, China, and Southeast Asia.

While Seattle, Washington hosted The International from 2012 to 2017 and The International 2018 was held in Vancouver, British Columbia, the push to make The International a traveling show around the world left the North American scene without any sort of destination for events.

The inaugural DPC season saw just one event, the Captain’s Draft 4.0 minor, hosted in North America. The 2018-2019 DPC season included zero. Worse, the only North American tournament organizer that maintained regular events on the continent during this time was Beyond the Summit, who do not typically host live audiences.

The last Dota 2 major outside The International to take place in North America is the 2016 Boston Major.

Though The International 2020 will stay on the road as it visits Stockholm, Sweden, having an ESL One major take place in Los Angeles is a solid consolation prize. It’s impossible to say what the competitive field will look like, but NA fans have reason to be excited for this one.