Team Spirit changed their Dota 2 line-up on 21 September, a month after winning The International 2026. Offlaner Magomed "Collapse" Khalilov and coach Yaroslav "Miposhka" Naidenov both moved to the inactive list the same day. Bohdan "Batyuk" Batiuk takes the offlane and Ilya "Illidan" Pivcaev joins the coaching staff, and the new line-up plays its first event at BLAST SLAM VIII from 29 September.
The club posted the change at 09:00 UTC on X and on its Telegram channel, with a statement describing both men as taking a break. "Both departures were expected and had already been discussed during the season," Team Spirit manager Dmitry "Korb3n" Belov said in it. "There's no drama, human resources just aren't infinite."
The new Team Spirit Dota 2 roster
- Position 1 (carry): Illya "Yatoro" Mulyarchuk
- Position 2 (mid): Denis "Larl" Sigitov
- Position 3 (offlane): Bohdan "Batyuk" Batiuk
- Position 4 (soft support): Alexey "not me" Kosmynin
- Position 5 (hard support): Alexandr "rue" Filin
- Coach: Ilya "Illidan" Pivcaev
Illidan takes Miposhka's place on the bench without displacing the rest of the staff: Milan "MiLAN" Kozomara, coach since 20 June, and analyst Mark "sikle" Lerman are both still active. Liquipedia's participant table for BLAST SLAM VIII lists the same five players and Illidan as Spirit's entry.
Spirit's statement described Collapse as "taking a break from the pro scene" and Miposhka as "taking a break from his career." Neither was described as retiring or being released, and Liquipedia lists both on the inactive roster rather than among former players.
Collapse steps back after nearly six years on the roster
Collapse joined Team Spirit on 19 December 2020, the day the organisation signed the Yellow Submarine roster that Yatoro also came in with. He played the offlane for every one of the team's International titles: 2021, 2023 and 2026. The most recent of those, on 23 August this year, was a 3-2 grand final over PARIVISION worth $1,660,200 to the roster. The club's statement called him "the most successful offlaner in Dota 2 history."
Miposhka's step back is from the coaching bench rather than the player seat. He captained the side to The International 2021 and again in 2023, then returned as coach on 20 June 2026 and won The International 2026 in that role.
The move is the latest in a post-TI15 shuffle that has reached most of the top end. Cr1t-'s step away earlier this month was an indefinite break rather than a retirement, and the same distinction applies here: an inactive listing keeps a player on the org's books and leaves a return open.
Who is Batyuk?
Batyuk is a 22-year-old Ukrainian offlaner, born 11 June 2004. He came up through Team Hryvnia in 2024, spent sixteen months at Passion UA from August 2024, then joined Yellow Submarine in March 2026.
He is not a complete unknown under the Spirit banner, which is what the club meant by "whom we know well." While still at Yellow Submarine he stood in for Collapse twice in April 2026, at PREMIER SERIES and at PGL Wallachia Season 8, where Spirit finished 7th-8th for $40,000 after losing 0-2 to Team Falcons.
Illidan's route is similar, and Spirit described him as having previously worked at Yellow Submarine. He played for the organisation in three spells between 2016 and 2019, has streamed for it since July 2023, coached Yellow Submarine from November 2025, then Team Spirit Academy from July 2026, and joined the main team's coaching staff on 21 September, the same day as Batyuk.
What it means for BLAST SLAM VIII
BLAST SLAM VIII runs from 29 September to 11 October with a $750,000 prize pool. The winner takes $270,000. Spirit are one of twelve invited teams in a sixteen-team field, confirmed when BLAST announced the full line-up on 17 September, alongside Team Liquid, OG, Xtreme Gaming, LGD Gaming, BetBoom Team, PARIVISION and Aurora Gaming; the other four slots went to closed qualifiers at the end of August.
The format is four GSL groups of four, all series best-of-three. Group winners go to seeding matches, runners-up drop to a last-chance stage, the rest are out. Playoffs are a double-elimination bracket from 8 to 11 October with a best-of-five grand final.
Spirit are not in the field at PGL Wallachia Season 9, so there is no warm-up: an offlaner with two stand-in events behind him and a new coach go straight into best-of-three group play eight days after the change. The margin is thin in a group of four, where only the winner goes directly to the seeding matches, the runner-up has to survive the last-chance stage, and the bottom two are out. Our post-TI15 tournament calendar covers what follows SLAM VIII.
FAQ
Why did Collapse leave Team Spirit? Spirit said on 21 September 2026 that he is taking a break from the pro scene. Manager Korb3n called both moves expected and discussed during the season, with "no drama." Collapse is listed as inactive rather than released.
Who replaced Collapse on Team Spirit? Bohdan "Batyuk" Batiuk, a 22-year-old Ukrainian offlaner signed from Yellow Submarine the same day.
Is Miposhka still with Team Spirit? He moved to the inactive list on 21 September 2026, after coaching the team since 20 June 2026. He won The International 2021 and 2023 as a player and 2026 as a coach.
Who is Team Spirit's coach now? Ilya "Illidan" Pivcaev, who joined the same day. MiLAN, coach since 20 June 2026, and analyst sikle remain active staff.
When does the new Team Spirit roster play? At BLAST SLAM VIII, which runs from 29 September to 11 October 2026 with a $750,000 prize pool.
Sources: Team Spirit's official announcement, published as a statement card on X (@TSpirit_Dota2, 21 September 2026) and on the club's Telegram channel; Liquipedia's Team Spirit, Batyuk, Collapse, Miposhka, Illidan and BLAST SLAM VIII pages for roster dates, player histories, results and event format. Retrieved 22 September 2026.
