by Jasper “Captain Art” Arcalas, Julius “swarley_” Tabios and Aileen “Chaos” Cerudo

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The announcement of ESL Manila 2016 in late 2015 shocked the global Dota 2 community — particularly the Filipino fans.

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Valve dropped a certifiable nuclear bomb on the world when it announced that the next Dota 2 Major would take place in Manila, Philippines!

Who would have thought that the busy capital of Philippines would be a spot for a 140-million prestigious tournament a decade ago? Back then, it was just a dream to pine for.

Many believed that the next Major will be hosted in the Southeast Asian region after the Frankfurt Major (Europe) and Shanghai Major (China). The other probable destination could have been South America (Sorry Colombia!) as North America already plays host to the biggest annual Dota 2 tournament in The International.

With Valve’s word however, the Manila Major will soon become a reality. But one question remains on the mouth of Dota 2 fans the world over: Why Manila?

Here’s five reasons why we think Manila won the bragging rights of hosting this momentous event.

Spell HYPE. P-I-N-O-Y-S.

The Filipinos fans are some of the craziest fans in the world. Talk about hyping an event: Filipinos get excited over the smallest bit of detail.

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In a MOBA-obsessed country like the Philippines, you’ll find the lifeblood of any spectator sport: Thousands of screaming fans asking for more.

The online hits and virality alone that they would get would be tremendous. Remember when Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach asked help from the #AldubNation? It was a steamroll of online support. Now imagine that same gaggle of force packed in a sports stadium or event hall. The experience would be ELECTRIC.

Plus, who popularized the line “THE ROAD TO GERMANY IS REAL!!!”? The Filipinos. The commentating skills of Filipino shout casters are beyond godlike in pure and utter hype.

Can you imagine how spine-tingling good it would be to hear thousands of fans chanting during a Major?

Plus, the Filipinos are known to be the one of the happiest and most hospitable people in the world!

So may it be the PINOYS or the infamous PEENOISE, Valve and the foreign teams will surely experience the best crowd and hype they can experience from this side of the planet. From the online viewers and event attendees to the shout casters, the Filipino Dota 2 gamers are worth investing for.

Filipinos won’t just relish the opportunity to see their homegrown go toe-to-toe with the best of the best but they will also be clamoring to see fan favourites Danil “Dendi” Ishutin (sincerely hope Natus Vincere make it.) , Artour “Arteezy” Babaev and Jacky “EternalEnvy” Mao on Philippine soil. Notice me EE-senpai!

Oh did we forget about the over-the-top demands? To give you an idea: ESL One Manila VIP tickets sold out merely 24 hours after going on sale last December 8, 2015. Now, take that in for a second.

The 20,000 capacity Mall of Asia Arena is expected to be jam packed as the rest of the tickets were sold out a couple of days after for ESL One Manila. The reception the Valve sponsored tournament is expected to be heaps greater than ESL One Manila with over P141,000,000 at stake and top tier teams sure to be flying over.

We guarantee a sell out. 😉

Low prices, world-class facilities

Operating costs in the Philippines are far, far lower than many of our more wealthy neighbors such as Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. Year in and year out more and more multinational, million-dollar companies are vying to invest into our beloved archipelago. It was only a matter of time before Supreme Chancellor GabeN took notice of our potential market.

But when it’s cheap, it doesn’t mean it’s not of quality. It may be cheaper in the Philippines but surely our humble country can pull off a world-class event.

Breathtaking scenery

Dota 2 Beach party anyone?

Dota 2 players don’t get out much. But they might want to go to the beautiful beaches of Boracay and Palawan that our country is known for after winning it all in June. Carpe diem, boys!

Imagine EE-sama lounging about the seaside drinking from a coconut husk arms around the Manila Major trophy. #OnlyInThePhilippines

A different kind of culture

Dota 2 fans have been all over the planet but they haven’t exactly been on this side of the Pacific and so near the Equator. They’ve had the delicatessen of Frankfurt, the dimsum of Shanghai, the seafood of Seattle but they haven’t had the Balut of Manila.

The infamous duck embryo will be a challenge even the highest skilled MMR player will be afraid of. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg as Philippine culture has so much more to offer!

Limitless possibilities

The growth of eSports is exponentially increasing and one way to capitalize on that is thru proper globalization. With Valve holding such an event in this country, they will secure a very strong foothold in this hotbed of a region and ultimately expand the reach of their game by leaps and bounds. With eSports finally getting embraced by powerhouse ESPN, the potential is overwhelming and Manila gets to ride the lightning.

But that’s just what we think. Maybe you have a different idea as to why Supreme Chancellor GabeN decided that Manila should be worthy of playing host to a Valve sponsored tournament. Let us know in the comments below!

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