Home Gaming Valve wants cities to bid to host The International just like The Olympics

Valve wants cities to bid to host The International just like The Olympics

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Who doesn’t love the spirit of The Olympics? The camaraderie, the passion for the game, the Olympic Committee sweeping through countries, forcing them to upgrade their infrastructure to a cost that is impossible to meet which essentially bankrupts everyone and while it’s a lovely month of competition brings everything crashing down as the organisation departs from their selected city and leaves the residents to clean up their mess.

It’s just the spirit of it all that gets me so excited, and it seems that I’m not the only one who enjoys how the Olympics conducts business. Valve has announced plans for how The International will be hosted in the future and it involves interested countries and cities throwing their names into a figurative hat to see who gets the honour of hosting the lucrative event.

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Announced yesterday evening, Valve has put out an “open call” for host cities that will require any interested locations to submit a very detailed proposal as to why they should be selected as the home of The International. As can be expected, the request for entries comes across largely as a marketing sheet as Valve doesn’t spare any details on how financially beneficial it would be for countries to host the event, citing previous instances of boosted tourism and revenue especially in Vancouver where it was reported in 2018 that The International drew in an extra $7.8 million for the local economy.

But as always, there’s obviously a catch. The list of requirements is, as can be expected, an extremely lengthy affair with cities needing:

  • A modern indoor arena or stadium with a capacity between 15,000 and 80,000, which must be available for at least a 10 day period in August 2021 (As an example, The 2020 International is being held at the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm; The 2019 International was held at Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai)
  • Additional space for ancillary events (e.g., vendor villages, fan zones, after parties)
  • Ample hotel space for upwards of 30,000 individuals
  • Fibre network connectivity from a local service provider
  • Proximity to an international airport
  • A strong local transportation system

Other factors, at both the municipal and national level, include:

  • Ensure the safety of The International’s contestants, workers, and fans
  • Maintain clear and continuous communication with Valve leading up to and during the event
  • Assist Valve with permitting and negotiating local regulations
  • Help Valve navigate immigration and Visa issues for The International’s contestants, workers, and fans
  • Support potential road closures
  • Commit to unfettered movement of event trucks on surface roads

Look, we all know that South Africa did a fairly good job of hosting the FIFA World Cup, but if I’m honest I very much doubt that Valve would consider holding The International in Durban. Maybe you want to be a sneaky bean and quietly sneak a proposal in under the nose of the government, and all the power to you. Here’s the full proposal if you want to be cheeky, but I think something of this scale is a little bit beyond one person.

Editor’s note: Challenge accepted.

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Last Updated: February 27, 2020

2 Comments

  1. MechMachine

    February 27, 2020 at 12:11

    Must be honest, I don’t believe SA has the audience, let alone the required infrastructure required to do so. Rugby, Cricket or Soccer, that’s a different story.

    Reply

  2. MechMachine

    February 27, 2020 at 12:11

    Must be honest, I don’t believe SA has the audience, let alone the required infrastructure required to do so. Rugby, Cricket or Soccer, that’s a different story.

    Reply

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