The International 2016 tickets on sale April 7

The International 6

The biggest event in the Dota calendar looms once again. Tickets for The International 2016 will go on sale April 7 at 10am PT and 10pm PT (April 7 at 6PM BST and April 8 at 6AM BST) ahead of the main event at Seattle's KeyArena August 8-13.

This year there are two ticketing options: the Midweek ticket gets you in for the first four days, including the opening ceremony and the all-star game, while the Finals ticket is for the last two days. You'll need both to see the lot, but Valve is also laying on a free outdoor viewing area for the finals.

I do wonder whether the separate tickets will reduce attendance during the play-offs, but Valve is incentivising live viewing with—you guessed it—virtual goodies. At First Blood in each individual game, 500 Attendee Treasures containing unique versions of 2016's Secret Shop Immortals will be distributed to spectators with a badge linked to their Steam account.

Tickets will be sold through Ticketmaster, and for all your burning questions, Valve has written up a ticketing FAQ.