The International 2022 is set to look very different from previous years. TI11 will be getting a new format and overhauled schedule that will turn the event into a four-week affair, with an official date being revealed.
Valve has slowly, clumsily been reworking the Dota 2 pro scene to look more similar to that of rival MOBA League of Legends. That started with the league-based Dota Pro Circuit, but things are set to become even more similar.
While The International has been a 10-day event for much of its existence, that won’t be the case this year. TI11 will have a new format that staggers the action across a four-week schedule. Here’s what the event will look like and when it will happen.
When is TI11?
TI11 will run from October 8 to October 30.
Rather than the traditional group stage and main event playoffs, the tournament will be broken up into three sections. The first will run from October 8-12, which is followed by the familiar round-robin group stage on October 15-18. The bulk of the playoffs will then run from October 20-23 with the grand finals taking place the next week.
Valve is taking a page out of League of Legends’ playbook for Worlds. Instead of having the final day of the tournament include the lower bracket finals and the grand finals, the final matches of the playoffs will occur October 29-30. This will make for an even grander grand final as fans are left to wait five days between the two legs of the main event.
Another wrinkle taken from Worlds is that the venues will change between the different parts of the tournament. Most of the playoffs will be in the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre, a venue with 6,850 seats. The final days of the event will take place in the Singapore Indoor Stadium, which can hold up to 12,000.
TI11 schedule, format, and date revealed
There will be three stages to The International 2022, broken up further into four parts. Here is how things will play out and the date for each part of TI11.
Last Chance Qualifiers (October 8-12)
The first section of the tournament is the Last Chance qualifiers. Because of the various issues surrounding the DPC season’s first canceled major and second major that had no Chinese representatives, more teams will earn qualifier spots in TI11 than in years past. Not everyone will reach the main stage, though.
Group Stage (October 15-18)
The group stage is a standard part of The International, but things will be different in 2022. TI11 will have a 20-team group stage with two groups of ten. As per usual, teams will play in a round robin to determine the 16 teams that advance into the playoffs and to determine which bracket they will start in. The bottom two teams of each group will be eliminated.
Playoffs (October 20-23)
The playoffs will move at a brisk pace across four days. It’s likely that this will look similar to past years, including the best-of-one start to the lower bracket. This will be the first part of The International 2022 that will have fans in attendance.
TI11 Finals (October 29-30)
TI11 will wrap up just in time for Halloween. The finals will take place across October 29 and 30. It’s unclear how many teams will be a part of this and what other festivities will be included. The all-star match, show matches, and other announcements related to Dota 2 and DOTA: Dragon’s Blood could all be included.
