With The International 2022 (TI11) now done and dusted, it’s time for fans and players alike to look ahead to the post-TI Dota 2 roster shuffle. This is of course a yearly tradition in the professional Dota 2 scene, where pro players look for new opportunities to compete in different teams and chase after the Aegis of Champions anew.
Image Credit: Valve
Keeping track of all the relevant roster moves can be difficult, so we’re here to do just that for you. Welcome to our 2022 roster shuffle tracker!
Transfers During TI11
As always, players start looking for new places to call home as soon as they get eliminated from The International. This year was no different, with more than a handful of transfers taking place in the middle of TI11.
Soniqs Releases Entire Roster and Coach Clairvoyance
Following a horrendous performance in the Group Stage which saw them bounced out of TI11 early, North American squad Soniqs released everyone on their roster including coach Aaron “Clairvoyance” Kim.
Incidentally, LESLÃO’s removal from the team was not explicitly stated to have been caused by the team’s failure at The International. Rather, Soniqs released him after it came to light that he had written a racist message on his Effigy, an item which replaces one of the filler buildings wherever his side’s base may be.
As for the rest, this could be the end of the long-running saga of the team formerly known as Quincy Crew. They have yet to turn in performances to be proud of at The International, so we’ll have to see what each player decides to do from here.
T1 Lets Go of Kuku, Xepher, Whitemon, and March
Fan favorite Southeast Asian squad T1 had a rough go at things at the last chance qualifiers, where they couldn’t get out of sixth place despite having the services of two-time International champions Anathan “ana” Pham and Topias “Topson” Taavitsainen.
As a result of their failure to qualify, team captain Carlo “Kuku” Palad and support players Kenny “Xepher” Deo and Matthew “Whitemon” Filemon are now all out of the roster. Coach Park “March” Tae-won is also no longer with the organization. Interestingly, ana and Topson are both still official members of the team, so it’s possible that T1 will try to build around them for the upcoming Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season.
DarkMago and Sacred Leave Thunder Awaken to Join beastcoast
Unfortunately for the unexpected dark horses in Thunder Awaken, their breakout performance at TI11 was cut short in the lower bracket by eventual third placers Team Liquid. Several days later, mid laner Herrera “DarkMago” Gonzalo announced his departure from the team in order to join beastcoast.
Offlaner Rafael “Sacred” Yonatan followed him shortly thereafter, thus replacing Jean “Chris Luck” Salazar and Adrián “Wisper” Dobles, respectively. The two outgoing beastcoast members, meanwhile, have yet to find new squads.
Post-TI11 Roster Changes
MATUMBAMAN Retires from Competitive Dota 2
Former International champion Lasse “MATUMBAMAN” Urpalainen is hanging up the mouse and keyboard, following Team Liquid’s exit from TI11 at the hands of Team Secret.
Third place at the tournament is absolutely nothing for MATUMBAMAN to be ashamed of. He caps off a legendary career in style, and with the support of millions of fans all over the world. His team will likely be hard-pressed to find a replacement that has his unique brand of charisma and experience at the carry position, and whoever they do find will have big shoes to fill.
DuBu Exits TSM
TSM did not have a good run at TI11, bombing straight out of the tournament dead last in the group stage.
Kim “DuBu” Doo-young parted ways with the organization after the conclusion of the event, leaving TSM short of a hard support player going forward.
Talon Says Goodbye to kpii and Hyde
With their campaign at TI11 ending in disappointment, Talon Esports will have to go back to the drawing board for the next DPC season.
They begin their rebuild by releasing Damien “kpii” Chok Sau-jing and Brizio “Hyde” Budiana.
ATF Moves to the OG Bench
Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf is now on OG’s list of inactive players, joining both Johan “n0tail” Sundstein and Sebastien “Ceb” Debs in this regard.
Like ana and Topson before him, though, he will be free to explore other options for the upcoming DPC season.
BetBoom Team is No More
After experiencing utter failure at TI11, BetBoom Team officially disbanded their entire squad on November 3rd.
All five former members have yet to find new teams as of the time of writing.
Jabz and SunBhie Depart Fnatic
As they were unable to make it very far at TI11, Fnatic have released offlaner Anucha “Jabz” Jirawong and coach Lee “SunBhie” Jeong-jae.
Jabz has since gone on to replace kpii at Talon Esports.
The Rest of Thunder Awaken Leave the Organization
Following the departures of both Sacred and DarkMago, the remaining players of Thunder Awaken have also chosen to part ways with the organization.
Crhistian “Pakazs” Casanova, Farith “Matthew” Huamancaja, and Jose “Pandaboo” Hernandez are no longer part of the team, leaving Thunder Awaken with a full roster to replace.
Oli Moves to Talon Esports
Invictus Gaming’s former hard support player Chan “Oli” Chon Kien is now a part of Talon Esports, after his previous team failed to make TI11 through the Chinese regional qualifiers.
Oli thus becomes the first Malaysian player to play for Talon Esports since the organization’s debut in 2021.
Raven Exits Fnatic
One of the best carry players from Southeast Asia and a longtime fixture of the Fnatic organization, Raven has announced his departure from the team.
Fnatic have since stated that he is free to explore his options going into the next DPC season. Given his skill and experience, we have no doubt that Raven will not find it difficult to look for another team that would appreciate his services.
The Evil Geniuses Call it Quits
This is the end of a long era. The entire Evil Geniuses roster has announced its disbandment, with all five players leaving the organization entirely. This also includes coach Kanishka “BuLba” Sosale, who had held the role for nearly five straight years before his departure from the squad.
Of course, this move is no surprise at all. EG bombed straight out of the TI11 playoffs after notching 14 wins in the group stage, which was definitely not in the cards given their performance in the preliminary rounds. Unfortunately for them, they just couldn’t put it together thereafter, losing to two South American teams in the form of Thunder Awaken and beastcoast.
Artour “Arteezy” Babaev and Andreas Franck “Cr1t-” Nielsen also exit the roster, with Arteezy in particular having been a mainstay in the Evil Geniuses brand since 2016. Cr1t-, meanwhile, joined the squad alongside Arteezy at the same time in 2016, and stayed for just as long. Star mid laner Azel “Abed” Yusop, consummate offlaner Egor “Nightfall” Grigorenko, and team captain Tal “Fly” Aizik are now free agents as well.
This news practically confirms the rumors surrounding EG as of late: that the organization was looking to sign South American players going forward. Former Thunder Awaken and beastcoast players Pakazs, Matthew, Pandaboo, Chris Luck, and Wisper are likely to be the next EG Dota 2 players, considering that they all just left their respective South American teams.
We will update this article as more news of transfers and signings comes in. Stay tuned for the latest on the 2022 Dota roster shuffle here at Hotspawn!
