The True Cost of Winning The International: Sneyking Reveals Earnings
For many Dota 2 fans, winning The International is the ultimate dream. But what is the actual financial outcome for the players? Sneyking from Tundra Esports recently shed some light on this topic during a livestream.
When asked about his earnings from winning TI11, Sneyking admitted that the prize money is not as glamorous as it seems. “I won’t say the exact figure,” he said. “But I received less than a million dollars. There are so many fees and taxes involved, so you don’t end up with that much.”
While Sneyking didn’t provide a detailed breakdown of how the prize money was divided, the community has made some assumptions. In an ideal scenario without any liabilities, each player from Tundra would have taken home $1.7 million. However, with expenses like organization cuts, federal taxes, and potentially state taxes, Sneyking’s earnings could have dropped to $930,000.
This is not the first time a TI-winner has revealed the financial reality of winning the tournament. Alliance’s AdmiralBulldog, who won TI3, admitted that he only made about $100,000 after taxes and organization cuts out of a $1.4 million prize.
It’s important to note that the prize pool for The International has been increasing every year, reaching a record-breaking $40 million in 2021. However, TI11 had a lower prize pool of $18 million due to Valve’s decision to release the battle pass a month before the tournament, giving less time for funding.
Winning The International is still a remarkable achievement for any Dota 2 player, but it’s clear that the financial realities are not as lucrative as they may seem.
Dota 2, The International, Tundra Esports, Sneyking, prize money, fees, taxes, earnings, financial reality