With CSGO Stockholm Major saved, can TI10 return to Sweden?

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s PGL Stockholm Major will still be going on as was previously planned.

The Swedish government has taken emergency action and changed immigration rules to ensure the $2 million CSGO tournament can continue on as planned. This is news that Dota 2 fans would’ve loved to hear several weeks back before the $40 million The International 2021 was postponed for two months and relocated.

With everything now squared away for the PGL Stockholm Major, does that carry any sort of implications for The International? Could the event be moved back to Stockholm? Unfortunately, there is no positive interpretation of this news for Dota 2 fans.

TI10 will not move back to Stockholm

Though Swedish esports fans may have gotten their hopes up in regards to Dota 2’s standing in the country, it’s extraordinarily unlikely that The International 2021 will find its way back to Stockholm. 

TI10 has been moved back to October and relocated to Bucharest, Romania. Those plans are likely set in stone. The only likely way this changes is if the health and safety situation in Romania shifts in a negative way very suddenly. Even if that does occur, it’s unlikely that things will be moved back to Stockholm.

More likely would be Valve tracking down a different location and possibly even looking to a different region. An impromptu return to Shanghai or even Seattle is much more likely than a move back to Stockholm. 

PGL Stockholm Major’s rescue shows fault for TI10 cancellation lies with Valve

Though Swedish authorities bore the brunt of the criticism for The International 2021’s near-cancellation, the rescuing of the PGL Stockholm Major shows that this wasn’t a legitimate gripe.

When push came to shove, Swedish politicians and immigration authorities moved quickly to save the upcoming CSGO major and it’s unlikely that this is because of Sweden’s many legendary players in the tactical shooter.

In reality, Valve waited until the last minute to make the push to save TI10. Whether that’s because the company was unaware of the seriousness of the situation until too late or because it was relying on its non-endemic partners for the event, Visit Stockholm and Stockholm Live, to sort things is unknown. 

Either way, the fact that the PGL Stockholm Major will continue on shows that things didn’t have to shake out the way they did with TI10 and that Swedish authorities are capable of moving quickly. One would think that this would be a lesson for Valve.

But given how many times Valve has shown its inability to handle red tape with prominent Dota 2 events it’s only a matter of time before the next catastrophic issue.