Valve announces online qualifiers for EEU to secure spots in the upcoming ESL Stockholm Major in May
After weeks of doubt, it appears that Dota fans will get to see Eastern European teams at the next major after all, as Valve announced on Twitter that there would be online qualifiers for the next Major for the EEU region. As of right now, not much is known about these qualifiers other than the date.
Starting from April 27th, the qualifiers will determine which EEU teams will make it to the next Major. The Stockholm Major is extremely important as it is the first real DPC Major of 2022, as the first one of the year was cancelled due to COVID concerns. Valve noted that more details about the event would be released by the channel hosting the EEU DPC, Beyond the Summit.
Finally good news for EEU Dota
This news comes after a period of silence regarding the EEU DPC. The regions tour was indefinitely postponed due to the ongoing situation in Ukraine. Because of Russian invasion, many players have been unable to compete. Team Spirit player Illya "Yatoro" Mulyarchuk recently posted video of his apartment in the aftermath of a Russian attack.
The war has created issues within the Russian esports organization Virtus.pro, which led them to drop out of the Gamer's Galaxy Invitational. Even some players have taken to virtual protests with OG carry Artem "Yuragi" Golubiev, putting #StoptheWar as a tag in his screen name. Though the situation has not improved, some teams seem to be able to compete in smaller, non-DPC events.
It's unclear what the format would be for this tournament. It would have to be much shorter event as the Major is soon approaching. Possibly, it would be a sped up version of the normal DPC format, but at this point is speculation. However, BTS has recently put up an image for the new event on Liquipedia.
The event will be hosted on Beyond the Summit's official Twitch channel. Stay tuned to Esports.gg for more news about the upcoming playoff tournament.