Early in April, all the ESL One Birmingham direct-invite Dota 2 pro teams were announced and the lineup is no doubt full of some of the best teams in the world. The tournament, which will be held from 28 May to 02 June 2019 sounds fantastic and will be a must-watch for esports fans, but something is becoming a bit of a problem. The ESL tournaments aren’t part of the DPC season and we’ve already seen five teams drop out of ESL One Mumbai. Unfortunately, we won’t see the DPC leaders, Virtus.Pro at ESL One Birmingham as the team has pulled out.
RELATED: Five Teams Drop Out of the Dota 2 ESL One Mumbai Tournament
It is becoming a bit of a trend for teams to pull out of ESL tournaments. Thankfully, the lineup of pro teams still looks amazing. Gambit will replace Virtus.Pro for ESL One Birmingham, joining some powerhouses of Dota 2. Virtus.Pro’s general manager, Roman Dvoryankin, explained their decision to pull out of ESL One Birmingham.
We won’t be able to defend the title in front of our English fans. The best teams in the world will battle on Birmingham stage and we were looking forward to thrilling and challenging games against them. However, the current DPC season schedule has taken its toll and as we approach the peak of the season we need to focus on preparation for home Major and The International. Sometimes it means sacrificing events. We will work hard to perform on highest level and ensure the best results in these two tournaments.
Even without VP, the tournament’s direct-invite teams still look amazing. In case you haven’t seen the direct-invites yet, check them out below.
- Vici Gaming
- Ninjas in Pyjamas
- PSG.LGD
- Team Liquid
- OG
- Evil Geniuses
- Team Secret
- Gambit
Which team or teams are you backing to win the entire ESL One Birmingham tournament and do you care if it is part of the DPC or not? Let us know in the comment section below.
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