Two Asian teams denied US visas for Dota 2 International championships

Two teams appear to have been denied US visas for next month's Dota 2 International tournament. China-based CIS-Game and Southeast Asian team Arrow Gaming are both facing the possibility that they'll lose their place in the tournament, which takes place July 18-21 and offers a prize pool of nearly $10 million dollars.

According to posts on the LiquidDota forums , using Chinese social media platform Weibo as a source, CIS-Game was offered no reason for the denial except an apology. Translated by a member of the LiquidDota forums, a spokesperson from CIS-Game reportedly said the team will reapply for the visa. “The 4 Chinese players as well as [the] manager of CIS have been denied American visas, they're currently preparing for their second try.”

While at least five members of CIS-Game have been denied visas, other veteran representatives from the team have had success. In addition to applying a second time, the team will also appeal to Valve for support.

Meanwhile, Southeast Asian team Arrow Gaming has also had problems securing visas, prompting them to apply a second time. A spokesperson for the team provided the following statement to OnGamers .

"With the help from the Minister our chances to receive the visa is higher. Me and Johnny received our visas. However, the other 4 were not so lucky. Valve will also provide us with a stronger letter of invitation to the embassy. So yes, we are hopeful about the second interview. We haven't talked about what will happen if our applications were denied a second time. Valve pretty much guaranteed to help us the best they can to bring our team to Seattle."

eSports competitors have had a hard time being recognised by the US government. League of Legends was last year deemed a professional sport by the US government , meaning international competitors can now travel to the US as professional athletes.

The Dota 2 International championships commence July 18 at KeyArena in Seattle, Washington.

(via PCGamesN )