Team Falcons have lost their coach and their manager in the space of two weeks, but the five players who won The International 2025 are still on the organisation's books. Manager Mohammad Khalil "AfrOmoush" Abu Al Eis announced on 4 September that he is looking for a new organisation, ending a spell that began when Falcons built the roster in November 2023. Coach Kurtis "Aui_2000" Ling had already confirmed his retirement on 23 August. None of skiter, Malr1ne, ATF, Cr1t- or Sneyking has been officially released.
That gap — coach and manager gone, players unmoved — is the whole story right now, and it is why the Falcons situation is being reported so differently across the scene. Here is what is confirmed, and what is still only reported.
What is confirmed
The coach and the manager have left. Aui_2000 told Russian outlet esports.ru on 23 August that he does not plan to continue his career in Dota 2, and later said on his personal X account that he would write a blog explaining the decision. He had joined Falcons as coach in January 2024. AfrOmoush followed on 4 September, announcing on his own account that he is seeking a new team after nearly three years with the organisation. Liquipedia's transfer log records both moves.
The playing roster is unchanged on paper. As of 6 September, Liquipedia still lists Oliver "skiter" Lepko, Stanislav "Malr1ne" Potorak, Ammar "ATF" Al-Assaf, Andreas "Cr1t-" Nielsen and Jingjun "Sneyking" Wu as the active five. All of them joined on 11 November 2023, when Falcons signed the squad — alongside AfrOmoush — to re-enter Dota 2. The signed lineup has never changed since, stand-ins aside.
TI 2026 went badly. Falcons arrived in Shanghai as defending champions after lifting the Aegis at The International 2025. At TI 2026, played from 13 to 23 August with 16 teams and with the playoffs staged at the Oriental Sports Center, they were knocked out in the first round of the lower bracket by Team Liquid on 21 August, finishing 7th–8th. Team Spirit went on to beat TEAM VISION 3-2 in the grand final to become the first organisation with three Aegis wins.
What is only reported
Everything about a disband falls into this bucket. Veteran player and streamer Alexey "Solo" Berezin published a series of Telegram posts in early September claiming Falcons would disband and field no roster at all, flagging the list as unconfirmed himself; the Dota press picked it up widely. Separate reports have linked ATF with Team Yandex and placed Malr1ne in talks with several organisations, while a competing version of the rebuild has Falcons keeping the ATF–Malr1ne core rather than clearing out entirely.
Cr1t- has given the strongest signal from inside the roster. GosuGamers reported that during the TI 2026 group stage he called the event probably the last this lineup would play together, and after the 21 August elimination he told the broadcast it was likely his own last International. Neither remark is an announced release, and Liquipedia still lists him as active. No disband claim has been confirmed by the organisation or by any of the five players.
No public statement from Falcons about the Dota 2 division has been reported since TI ended. Until one arrives, or until a player posts his own departure, the roster stands.
Why the delay matters
The shuffle around Falcons is unusually slow even by post-TI standards, and the knock-on effects are already visible. The 2026 off-season has been chaotic enough that events are struggling to fill their fields — 1win Essence III was postponed, and PGL Wallachia Season 9 has been reported to be struggling to fill its 16-team field while organisations wait for rosters to settle.
Falcons are one of the largest blockers in that queue. Five players who won The International 2025 together are notionally unavailable, and every team hoping to sign one of them is waiting on a decision that has not come.
Other organisations have moved faster. Xtreme Gaming released NothingToSay, fy, xNova and Xxs on 4 September, along with head coach LaNm, keeping only Ame and rebuilding around him. Xipto Esports entered Dota 2 on 31 August with a Southeast Asian veteran roster built around 23savage. Both were announced by the organisations themselves, which is precisely what the Falcons story is still missing.
What to watch next
The next confirmed move will most likely come from a personal account rather than from Falcons: both AfrOmoush and Aui_2000 broke their own news. PGL Wallachia Season 9 in Bucharest is the first significant event of the new season, and rosters generally firm up as teams commit to attending.
Treat any Falcons lineup circulating before an official post as a rumour, however confident the source sounds. This shuffle has already produced several contradictory rosters for the same organisation.
FAQ
Have Team Falcons disbanded their Dota 2 roster? No. As of 6 September 2026 there has been no official announcement, and all five players are still listed as active. Reports of a full disband come from insider sources, not from the organisation.
Who has actually left Team Falcons? Coach Aui_2000, who announced his retirement on 23 August 2026, and manager AfrOmoush, who said on 4 September 2026 that he is looking for a new organisation. No players have been officially released, though Cr1t- has publicly hinted that TI 2026 was his last International.
Where did Team Falcons finish at The International 2026? 7th–8th. They were eliminated by Team Liquid in the first round of the lower bracket on 21 August, having entered as the defending champions from TI 2025.
Is ATF joining Team Yandex? That has been reported by multiple outlets citing insider sources, but it has not been confirmed by ATF, Team Yandex or Team Falcons.
Who won The International 2026? Team Spirit, who beat TEAM VISION 3-2 in the grand final in Shanghai on 23 August 2026 for their third Aegis of Champions.
Sources: Liquipedia Dota 2 (Team Falcons, Portal:Transfers), esports.ru, GosuGamers, dota2.ru, cybersport.ru. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
