Asian pro gamers almost barred from world's biggest e-sports championship

'The International,' a championship tournament for Dota 2, is ongoing in the city of Seattle. Playoffs began earlier this month and the final bracket — an eight-team double elimination — began this weekend at KeyArena. With a prize pool of over $10 million dollars, 'The International' is the world's largest e-sports championship.

 

However, red tape almost kept several gamers from participating in the championship. China-based 'CIS-Game' and Malaysia-based 'Arrow Gaming' are two teams that were denied U.S. visas and faced the possibility of losing their place in the tournament and consequently, their shot at the prizes. It was a disheartening realization after months of playing and training.

 

On the Chinese social networking site Weibo, a spokesperson from CIS-Game reported that no reason was given for the initial denial, only that the embassy was "sorry." Their only recourse was to reapply. "The 4 Chinese players as well as [the] manager of CIS have been denied American visas, they're currently preparing for their second try." 'Arrow Gaming' faced similar struggles, two members got their visas but "the other four were not so lucky." 

 

A spokesperson for 'Arrow' expressed hope that with the aid of their Minister, their chances at securing the visas would improve. Both 'CIS-Game' and 'Arrow Gaming' also stated that they would be asking Valve, the developer of Dota2 which also helped organized the championship, for assistance with this matter. Said Arrow: "Valve will also provide us with a stronger letter of invitation to the embassy [...] Valve pretty much guaranteed to help us the best they can to bring our team to Seattle."

 

Together with the promised assistance from Valve in the form of supporting documents and backing from Khairy Jamaluddin, Malaysia's Minister of Youth and Sports, the visas were finally approved for 'Arrow,' just three weeks before the event. Meanwhile 'CIS-Game' found visa approvals on their fourth attempt. Team member Lin 'June' Shiyang reported that the officer in charge was familiar with Dota 2. "All his questions were about Dota 2, asking me my ID and when our team was made." He 'inflame' Yongzheng was pleasantly taken back by the officer, who asked for their Steam ID’s, wanting to add them all to his friends list. They “reluctantly” agreed.

 

Despite this happy ending, the e-sports scene struggles to gain legitimacy and recognition even as it grows tremendously in size and scope. Last year, after a lengthy campaign by Riot Games and other interested parties, 'League of Legends' was deemed a professional sport by the U.S. government. That's not just an empty title that has been conceded, but a groundbreaking development that allowed 'League of Legends' professionals to be considered professional athletes awarded working visas to strut their game. 

 

And while it's easy to dismiss official recognition as a mere legal formality, it presents real consequences to gamers and organizers of other popular e-sports games like Starcraft II, Hearthstone, and of course Dota 2. These games are still not recognized by the U.S. government with official sport status and until then, professional players of these games continue to go through the usual channels for their visas. Their shot at prizes in competitions in foreign territories can be undermined by a single failed application.

 

Furthermore, each game must be lobbied for recognition on an individual basis. So while Hearthstone, Dota 2 and Starcraft II continue to be some of the most popular e-sports ever, recognition for 'League of Legends' means nothing to professional players of these games. One site dedicated to parodies of e-sports current affairs proclaimed that visa denials are part of a larger conspiracy to improve the odds for American teams at tournaments.

 

The only team member within 'CIS-Game' who had no problems securing his visa was Dominik 'Black^' Reitmeier, likely due to his being a German national. Reitmeier joined the team last March after health forced Xu 'BurNIng' Zhilei to step down. Last year, team Orange_e-sports suffered when member Chon Xin 'Ohaiyo' Khoo was unable to secure a visa in time for the championships.

 

Not only do international gamers get excluded, but they lose their chance to score serious prize money and rewards for their dedication and hard work. — TJD, GMA News