ESL announces next $250,000 Dota event to be held in Philippines

ESL have declared that their next stop on the worldwide Dota 2 tour will be in the underserved region of South East Asia at Manila’s Mall of Asia Arena in the Phillippines.

ESL One, to arrive in the country April 23-24, will bring with it a $250,000 prize pool and the world’s best teams, fresh off the back of the second Valve Major of the year in neighbouring China.

Though not quite the $3m pool offered at March’s Shanghai Major, the event is a huge step for South-East Asia which is often overlooked in eSports by regional rivals China and South Korea.

The region, despite fielding several world-class players and teams (including the somewhat infamous Mineski organisation) very rarely sees large tournament support.

“The Philippines have a strong history with Dota 2, and so when discussing possible Asian events, the decision was an easy one to make,” said VP of pro gaming at ESL Ulrich Schulze. “This is a country and community that loves Dota 2, and we’re honored to be able to say we’re making history with this event: it’s the first event of its kind in the region and we can’t wait to see fan reactions to what we have in store.”

Manila’s Mall of Asia Arena has a full-house capacity of 20,000, and basic weekend tickets begin at ?500 ($10) with premium packages up to ?5,000 ($106).