The Invitational's prize pool comes to $24 million USD

The International is the biggest tournament in the Dota 2 calendar, and arguably on the esports calendar as well, and it's now started in Seattle, pitting some of the best teams in the world against each other. Last year's prize pool broke records, and this year's event has also done the same, as it's surpassed the $24 million USD mark.

This is almost $4 million more than last year, meaning there's a 16% increase, and this can even grow further if fans continue to buy Battle Passes, which help fund the prize pool while also giving access to in-game content.

In regards to who's competing for this mammoth prize, top teams like Evil Geniuses, Team Liquid, and Virtus.Pro are all involved, and surely this amount of money is going to be a major motivating factor. How far can this grow in the next five years?

Thanks, GamesIndustry.biz.