China used to be a powerhouse in the Dota 2 scene.
Seizing the Aegis every other year from The International 2 withInvictus Gamingthrough The International 6 withWings Gaming.
The even number years were always earmarked for China.
Until OG decided to throw a monkey wrench in and flip the narrative on its head.
From TI8-TI10LGDtook two runner-up positions and a bronze.
With him and so many others exiting, the Chinese pro-Dota 2 scene was now officially starving for talent.
The region had its first setback with accusations of match-fixing and scripting, resulting in amassive banacross the region.
That was nearly the entire new generation of Chinese professional players.
Then only one team,LGD, was directly invited toThe International 2023via DPC points.
And when it didn’t seem as if things could get worse, they of course did.
The region was hit with the news they would have only one slot allocated to them through qualifiers.
That meant only two teams from China would be heading to The International in Seattle.
This was the least amount of Chinese teams to represent the region at The International ever.
Is 2024 China’s year?
Retired players made their way back to the Dota 2 map.
But it wasAzure Raythat took the lead for the new season in Malaysia.
In a thrilling reverse sweep, AR claimed the first Chinese title at a LAN in over a year.
The open qualifiers begin right after the new year.
