KAZAN, February 19. /TASS/. The first multi-sport tournament Games of the Future started in Kazan with competitions in phygital MOBA (Dota 2 + Super Final) at the Kazan Expo International Exhibition Center. The official opening ceremony of the event will be held on February 21.
As expected, the Dota 2 competition sparked a lot of excitement among fans. On February 2, it was announced that tickets for the final match were sold out in five minutes. The competition in this discipline will take place from February 19 to 25. First, the teams will compete in a popular video game, followed by a real-world competition similar to Dota 2.
A total of 16 teams will participate in the Dota 2 competition, including teams from Russia, China, Peru, Iran, and the Philippines. Other teams participating in the tournament include Entity (representing Kazakhstan, Belarus, Russia, Philippines), Winter Bear (Turkey, Iran, Russia), One Move (Russia, Belarus), LGD (China), Beastcoast (Peru), Neon Esports (Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, South Africa), Echpo4mak (Russia), Invictus Gaming (China, Malaysia), Liga Team (Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus), Boom Esports (Peru), Geek Fam (Philippines), PSG. Quest (Lebanon, Kazakhstan, Russia), Thunder Awaken (Peru, Bolivia), Hydra (Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Kazakhstan).
The group stage of the physical hockey event also began at the Ice Arena. Each match is divided into two parts: the digital half, in which the teams play a hockey simulator, and the physical half, in which the teams compete in a 3-on-3 format to see who is the strongest on the hockey rink. The outcome of each match is determined by the results of both phases: the goals scored in the digital and physical phases are added together.
The competition program also includes phygital football (February 22 - March 3), phygital basketball (February 21-29), phygital racing (the tournament will be held in Sochi on March 2-3), phygital combat (February 22-23), phygital skateboarding (February 28 - March 3), Warface + laser tag (February 20-24), CS2 + laser tag (February 23-28), Standoff 2 + laser tag (February 27 - March 3), phygital MOBA (MLBB + Super Final on February 26 - March 3), World of Tanks + Super Final (February 21-26), Speedrun + Super Final (February 28 - March 2), robot battle (February 24-26), drone racing (February 27-29), sports programming (February 28-29), dance simulator (February 25 - March 1), VR rhythm simulator (February 25 - March 1), cybathletics (February 22-23), phygital BMX (February 28-29), and virtual cycling race (February 22).
Before the formal tournaments began, phygital games were held as a test competition for the Games of the Future. There were ten such tournaments, with the first phygital games taking place from September 21 to September 23, 2022, and the most recent - from October 5 to October 22, 2023.
Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko believes that the Games of the Future will help bring the sports community together. "This is a global event, a Russian product that opens a new page in the history of sports," he said.
Russian Sports Minister Oleg Matytsin believes the interest in the Games of the Future reflects the project's bright future. "Games of the Future is an innovative pioneering project initiated by Russia," he said.
The Games of the Future will end on March 3 with new disciplines using modern technologies, the digital environment, as well as physical exercise. The competition format takes advantage of cutting-edge innovations in e-sports, robotics, augmented and virtual reality, information technology and artificial intelligence.