ESLFACEIT Group Requested Dota 2 Broadcast Talent Take Paycuts While Working Their Circuit

Despite announcing huge prize pools for their tournaments freelance broadcast talent were strongarmed into taking a paycut in the region of 15%

Photo courtesy of ESL

According to multiple sources familiar with the matter the ESLFACEIT Group requested that broadcast talent that work their events take cuts to their day rate to ensure they are hired. While the cuts are believed to be different for each member of talent, the sources placed the average paycut in the region of a 15% reduction. This comes at a time when the esports tournament operator has announced an extended tournament circuit and a tournament in Riyadh with a prize pool of $5,000,000.

The reduction in pay was presented as a “one-off” necessity ahead of the last Dreamleague season of 2023 but was then requested again for the hiring for ESL One Kuala Lumpur. Then in a group call at the start of the year it was explained that the paycuts would have to be permanent as they were looking to cut talent rates company wide. ESL would go on to layoff 15% of their workforce in February 2024.

“There was a big call between the talent and ESL where they explained they were being squeezed and were having to cut talent rates” one source explained. “It started off as a one-off thing because of a "new event", then became two events and then became a more permanent thing.”

Another source confirmed the paycuts were now permanent and that talent had felt pressured to accept them as it wasn’t clear if there would be any other options for work outside of the ESLFACEIT Group.

“When the biggest Dota TO [tournament operator] says that if you don’t take paycuts they’re either going to hire fewer people or run fewer events then you have to agree. No one is going to risk getting no work so in the end everyone agreed to it.”

Towards the end of 2023 Valve had decided to end their Dota Professional Circuit (DPC) after six years, leaving The International as the only official Valve event. This left the ESLFACEIT as the premier circuit left for Dota 2, having put millions of dollars into facilitating teams participation in Dreamleague and the subsequent Riyadh Masters. That was before PGL announced a minimum of eight $1,000,000 prize tournaments across 2024 and 2026 and BLAST announced five Dota events across 2024 and 2025 called the BLAST Slam circuit. With more events on the calendar it isn’t clear if the broadcast talent could decide to leverage exclusivity in order to make up the financial shortfall. The same sources we spoke to with said there were no plans to do so at this time.

We reached out to the ESLFACEIT Group with the following questions:

• Why would ESL need to make these cuts as a business?

• How does ESL reconcile the volume of prize money while asking broadcast talent to take cuts to their dayrates?

• Has ESL signed any Dota broadcast talent to long term contracts following this new arrangement?

• Has the emergence of other Dota tournaments changed ESL's perspective on these paycuts?

The ESLFACEIT Group declined to respond to multiple requests for comment.