Falcons make grand Dota 2 entrance with ATF, ex-Tundra duo as season draws near

Saudi-backed esports organization Falcons has entered the Dota 2 scene in a big way, acquiring two of the Tundra Esports core that won The International 2022 in the lead-up to the Dota competitive season’s return this week.

Support Jingjun “Sneyking” Wu and top-ranked carry Oliver “skiter” Lepko heads up an interesting roster for Falcons who are expected to line up at the ESL One Kuala Lumpur open qualifiers on Nov. 14. Joining the squad in the offlane is Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf, who spent TI 2023 watching from home after stints with OG, Nigma Galaxy, and a loan to Quest Esports.

The roster was properly announced on Nov. 11 but keen-eyed Dota fans spotted the squad’s formation on FACEIT signing up for the Kuala Lumpur qualifiers. While it wasn’t a 100 percent guarantee then, it was a clear indication Falcons had made their move 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 best part of a year with Shopify which included a top-four finish at the Lima Major. Assuming he sticks around for 2024, he’ll enter his 12th year of competitive Dota with Falcons.

Rounding out the roster is untested rookie Stanislav “Malr1ne” Potorak. The 19-year-old Russian first made waves with Creepwave before moving to Nemiga Gaming in 2022. With Malr1ne, Nemiga took out April’s Dota Pro Circuit Eastern European Division Two title, but the squad failed to make its mark in Division One in the following season.

Fans may be familiar with Malr1ne after he stood in for Tundra and Entity at DreamLeague Season 20 and 21 respectively, and will join the Falcons as the mid-laner to round out an interesting mix of old and new.

Falcons has aimed to make a foray into multiple esports over the past few months, most notably seeking a spot in League of Legends’ LEC and beginning to form a new superteam in Counter-Strike 2. While talks over joining the LEC broke down in July, and a major backflip from CS2 player NiKo put a kink in expansion plans, Falcons is now ready to take to Dota 2 with renewed vigor.

The new squad is expected to suit up this week and is likely to participate in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) qualifier for ESL One Kuala Lumpur, itself held in mid-December.