Epic Esports Events announced that it is organizing the EPICENTER Major, the fifth Major in the Dota Pro Circuit 2018-2019 season. As a Major tournament, the prize pool for competitors is $1 million, with 15,000 total DPC points up for grabs.
The tournament will be held in Moscow with the group stage scheduled for June 22 to 23. Playoffs begin on June 24 and the grand finals are scheduled for June 30. The second half of the playoffs all the way to the grand finals will be played on the stage at the CSKA Arena. Epic Esports revealed that the tournament will feature a 360-degree stage design. This will allow the audience to have a clear view of the arena regardless of where they are seated.
A total of 16 Dota 2 teams will be part of the tournament, with 15 coming from different regional qualifiers. Europe, China, and CIS, are all given three slots, while North America, Southeast Asia, and South America are given two slots each. The final participant is the winner of the Starladder Ukraine Minor, which will be held on June 10 to June 16.
The schedule for the qualifiers will be announced once the qualifiers for the Paris Major is done.
Epic Esports is already offering tickets for sale at their website, with single-day tickets going for around $8 each at the current exchange rate. Three-day pass holders receive gifts and bonuses depending on their tier. More information about tickets and gifts will be released at a later date.
The Moscow Major is the fifth and final Major of the DPC 2018-2019 season. The first was the Kuala Lumpur Major, which was won by Virtus.pro. The second was the Chongqing Major, with Team Secret declared as the champion. The DreamLeague Season 11 is currently ongoing, with Dota 2 teams PSG.LGD, Vici Gaming, Keen Gaming, and Fnatic vying for a semi-finals slot. The fourth is the Paris Major, which will be held in Disneyland from May 4 to May 12.
As of this writing, Team Secret leads the season rankings, followed by Virtus.pro with Evil Geniuses in third. PSG.LGD is in fourth and Fnatic rounds out the top five.