Dota 2 is finally getting a new esports tournament in the UK and Ireland, with its own LAN finals.
ESL UK and brand sponsor Mercedes-Benz have joined forces to announce a new addition to the ESL Premiership series of UK and Ireland tournaments: the ESL Premiership Skirmish.
Skirmish is the name of game-specific challenger level tournaments within the ESL ecosystem, which will take place alongside the main ESL Premiership competitions.
The ESL Premiership Dota 2 Skirmish will feature alongside the ESL Premiership. It will aim to help identify emerging new talent and be a proving ground for UK and Irish talent.
The top 20 players (top 4 from each role) who have signed-up through esl.im/dota2signup will enter the four-week online tournament, starting from Tuesday October 22nd at 7pm. The sign-up deadline is October 8th.
Each week, players will be randomly put together into teams where each player will fight for their share of the £2,500 prize pool.
The top two players from each role will advance to play in the live finals at Manchester’s Bowlers Exhibition Centre on November 24th, which will have its own Skirmish Stage. The event will also feature the CSGO and Rainbow Six ESL Prem finals as well as merch and free-to-play booths.
“Having Mercedes-Benz involved with the national tournament will see [the success of ESL One Birmingham] replicated within the ESL Premiership. It also means a more varied offering for players and fans with even more communities involved.”
JAMES DEAN, esl uk
ESL says there is also the potential for Dota 2 to become a full Premiership title in the near future.
“It is hoped that the inclusion of the game within the ESL Premiership will help to reinvigorate the UK and Ireland Dota 2 scene, focusing the tournament around individual players rather than teams,” read a press release.
The announcement follows the success of the Dota 2 ESL One Birmingham events which have taken place in 2018 and 2019.
As ESL’s global mobility partner, Mercedes-Benz has already been supporting Dota 2 at ESL One tournaments since 2017. Starting in the Winter season of 2019, however, the partnership will extend into the ESL Premiership and see an entry of Dota 2 into the national tournament for the first time.
“The partnership between Mercedes-Benz and ESL has already proved to be hugely successful and has resulted in two incredible ESL One Birmingham tournaments for Dota2 in 2018 and 2019,” said James Dean, Managing Director of ESL UK.
“Having Mercedes-Benz involved with the national tournament will see that same success replicated within the ESL Premiership. It also means a more varied offering for players and fans with even more communities involved.”
The ESL Premiership Skirmish weekly matches and finals will be broadcast live on the ESL UK Twitch channel.
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Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
