How much is The International 2022’s total prize pool and why did it decline?

Updated on November 2 at 10:30 a.m. (GMT+8): Updated the official prize pool distribution.

After a total of 220 world-class Dota 2 games at The International 2022, only Team Secret, Tundra Esports, Team Aster, and Team Liquid remain, hoping to lift the Aegis of Champions.

While the four teams prepare for the final two days of TI11, it’s important to know what they are competing for, aside from being recognized as Dota 2 world champions.

TI11’s total prize pool sits at US$17,930,859 at the time of writing, a far cry from TI10’s US$40,018,195 total prize pool.

TI10 champion Team Spirit took home US$18,208,300. The team that wins TI11 will only take home at least US$8,073,494, which isn’t even half the lion’s share of last year’s prize pool.

To understand the decline of the biggest prize pool in esports, we should look into the major changes made by Valve to The International’s battle pass.

• 1HP was the difference between top 4 and going home for Team Liquid at TI11
• PSG.LGD holds on for dear TI11 life against upstart South American challengers

Why has TI11’s total prize pool declined compared to the previous TI tournaments?

The International prize pools have always reached astronomical numbers because of the crowdfunding system Valve introduced in 2013. An additional 25 percent of all TI3 Compendium sales were added to the total prize pool that year.

From TI3 to TI10, the prestigious Dota 2 tournament consistently increased its total prize pool each year. But this streak ended when Valve changed the battle pass schedule for TI11.

Previous battle passes were often released months ahead of The International — sometime around May to June. TI11’s battle pass was released a month before The International 2022’s group stage began, which gave this year’s prize pool a shorter timetable than its previous iterations. 

TI11’s battle pass model was also changed this year, with Valve splitting it into two parts. Part 1 will run from September 1 to November 2. Part 1 is also the only period where 25 percent of all purchases from the battle pass and level bundles will be added to TI11’s prize pool.

Part 2 will launch in November, but will not have its contributions added to TI11’s prize pool.

TI11’s total prize pool and distribution

TI11’s total prize pool is at US$18,930,775, according to the Dota 2 Prize Tracker.

With Part 1 of TI11’s battle pass concluding in a few days, it will be difficult for this year’s tournament prize pool to surpass TI7’s prize pool which was US$23,187,916.

READ MORE: Team Liquid iNSaNiA says MATUMBAMAN is the best player at TI11