Saudi-backed esports group Falcons has entered the Dota 2 scene in a giant method, buying two of the Tundra Esports core that received The Worldwide 2022 within the lead-up to the Dota aggressive season’s return this week.
Assist Jingjun “Sneyking” Wu and top-ranked carry Oliver “skiter” Lepko heads up an attention-grabbing roster for Falcons who’re anticipated to line up on the ESL One Kuala Lumpur open qualifiers on Nov. 14. Becoming a member of the squad within the offlane is Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf, who spent TI 2023 watching from dwelling after stints with OG, Nigma Galaxy, and a mortgage to Quest Esports.
The roster was properly announced on Nov. 11 however keen-eyed Dota followers spotted the squad’s formation on FACEIT signing up for the Kuala Lumpur qualifiers. Whereas it wasn’t a 100% assure then, it was a transparent indication Falcons had made their transfer after Tundra’s sudden breakup after TI 2023.
Alongside the Tundra duo and a revitalized ATF is Andreas “Cr1t-” Nielsen, who joins Falcons after departing Shopify Rebellion last week. The 27-year-old Dane spent the very best a part of a yr with Shopify which included a top-four end on the Lima Main. Assuming he sticks round for 2024, he’ll enter his twelfth yr of aggressive Dota with Falcons.
Rounding out the roster is untested rookie Stanislav “Malr1ne” Potorak. The 19-year-old Russian first made waves with Creepwave earlier than transferring to Nemiga Gaming in 2022. With Malr1ne, Nemiga took out April’s Dota Professional Circuit Japanese European Division Two title, however the squad did not make its mark in Division One within the following season.
Followers could also be aware of Malr1ne after he stood in for Tundra and Entity at DreamLeague Season 20 and 21 respectively, and can be part of the Falcons because the mid-laner to spherical out an attention-grabbing mixture of previous and new.
Falcons has aimed to make a foray into a number of esports over the previous few months, most notably seeking a spot in League of Legends’ LEC and beginning to form a new superteam in Counter-Strike 2. Whereas talks over becoming a member of the LEC broke down in July, and a significant backflip from CS2 participant NiKo put a kink in growth plans, Falcons is now able to take to Dota 2 with renewed vigor.
The brand new squad is anticipated to swimsuit up this week and is prone to take part within the Center East and North Africa (MENA) qualifier for ESL One Kuala Lumpur, itself held in mid-December.
