Dota 2 is gearing up for its most anticipated tournament of the year: Valve’s The International. Qualifiers have begun in various regions worldwide, with teams vying for limited spots at the event. Recently, the Chinese and North American qualifiers concluded, but unfortunately, viewership is at its lowest in years for these qualifiers.
For 2024, Valve has revamped the qualification process for The International. Previously, teams competing in the Dota Pro Tour were invited, but this circuit has been discontinued. Under the new system, tournament organizers PGL invited some teams to the qualifiers and allowed others to advance through an open tournament. In North America, three teams were invited and five qualified through the open, while in China, six teams were invited and six qualified.
Out of the 20 total teams across both regions, only three spots were available for this year’s The International: one from North America and two from China. After a tense double elimination bracket in both events, nouns qualified for TI through the North American qualifier for the second consecutive year. In China, Team Zero and G2.iG secured their spots.
The International 2024 North America Closed Qualifier Viewership Statistics
In The International 2024: North America Closed Qualifier, the final match between Nouns and Shopify Rebellion was the most watched, reaching 61.8K Peak Viewers. This was a significant increase compared to the next-most popular match and a notable rise from the 20.1K Average Viewers.
Overall, the event accumulated 811.9K Hours Watched over just over 40 hours of broadcasting. In comparison, the Chinese event garnered significantly more viewership, although the data from Chinese live-streaming platforms is unreliable.
The International 2024 China Closed Qualifier Viewership Statistics
The International 2024: China Closed Qualifier was significantly more watched than its North American counterpart, with 1.16M Hours Watched and an average viewership of 24.9K AV. Viewership for the event was not only more stable on average, but also reached higher peaks for many more matches.
Peak viewership for the Chinese qualifier peaked at 64.5K Peak Viewers during Azure Ray’s match against G2.iG. This match not only reached a higher overall peak than the North American series but also saw multiple matches surpass 50K concurrent viewers, a feat the American event could not achieve.
Viewership for both events has decreased compared to previous years, although these qualifiers rely heavily on the participating teams to generate viewership, making it volatile. In 2023, the North American qualifiers saw a significant boost in viewership due to the participation of B8, a Ukrainian team allowed to compete in the North American circuit under a special exception. They were the most popular team of the event and greatly impacted viewership.
Viewership Trends for The Past Three Qualifiers in North America and China
Over the past three qualifier events for each region, 2024 saw a notable downturn in viewership. The 2023 North American qualifier had 122.9K PV, and the 2022 Chinese qualifier had 138.7K PV. Although The International remains Dota 2’s premier event, interest in these qualifiers appears to be waning.
The 2024 North American qualifier experienced a significant drop in Spanish and Russian-language viewership compared to 2023. Despite the same number of channels covering both years, the 2023 edition saw an unusually high level of interest from Spanish-speaking, Russian-speaking, and Ukrainian-speaking fans, which was not replicated in 2024.
North American viewership has rarely been a significant part of Dota 2’s esports audience, but the declining viewership for these qualifiers is concerning for Dota 2 esports, which is transitioning away from the DPC.
The International 2024 begins this September, and Esports Charts will track viewership data for the event and continue to monitor statistics for the world's qualifying events. Dota 2 must demonstrate that it can still captivate millions of fans as it has in the past without the DPC. Stay updated on the evolving scene with Esports Charts' objective viewership statistics.