The four Chinese teams that qualified for the Stockholm Major will be unable to attend the event in May due to COVID-19 travel restrictions and visa issues.
Instead, PSG.LGD, Xtreme Gaming, Team Aster, and Royal Never Give Up will play in a separate Regional Final from May 6 to 8, Perfect World announced today.
If Perfect World proceeds with the same format from the last Tour, when the Winter Major was canceled, the Regional Final should be a double-elimination bracket with extra prize money and DPC points on the line.
Why can’t Chinese teams attend the Stockholm Major?
China’s aggressive pursuit of a zero-COVID policy has led to severe lockdowns in several cities, including Shanghai, where several Dota 2 teams are based.
Division I winners PSG.LGD were unable to secure travel visas for themselves, the organization announced yesterday on Weibo.
Even if they leave the country, contracting COVID-19 overseas would have posed a massive obstacle in returning home. During The International 10, several members of Team Aster and Invictus Gaming tested positive for COVID-19, which delayed their return to China by months.
How many teams will attend the Stockholm Major?
As of the time of writing, no communication has come from Valve regarding any replacement teams for the Stockholm Major.
Without the four Chinese teams, the Major will feature 14 teams, with three teams still to be decided from the DPC Eastern Europe qualifiers.
It’s possible that additional replacements will be called up from the various regions, either through some sort of last-chance qualifier or based on the teams’ standings in Tour 2.
Catch the DPC CN Regional Final from May 6 onwards on the Perfect World English Twitch channel.
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