The Dota 2 esports circuit has been around for nearly 15 years, as it launched alongside the game. Throughout those years, many special players have competed in Dota 2’s competitive circuit, but only a few players have stood out. Among them, Johan ‘N0tail�Sundstein stands above all because of his unprecedented success and impact.

N0tail was a versatile player

During his career, N0tail played almost every role in Dota 2. He initially started as a position four (soft support) player at Fnatic but transitioned to the carry position after joining Team Secret and later OG. N0tail was always a game-changer in every position, including his time as a carry-mid hybrid in the first few years at OG, but most people know of his impact as a leader.

The last position he played was position five (hard support) when he served as OG’s captain. This was the most successful period of his career as he was the shot-caller for the team’s victory at The International 2018 and The International 2019.

He had multiple signature heroes during his time as a player, as he was an Io, Chen, and Enchantress specialist during his days as position four. However, he moved over to Meepo and Terrorblade when he was a carry, then Nature’s Prophet when he last played as a position five support player.

N0tail had a career full of iconic stories

Throughout his iconic career, N0tail was always a compelling player. At Fnatic, he was part of a team that succeeded in another game, Heroes of Newerth. They were outsiders, but they proved they belonged in Dota 2. When that project ended, he moved over to Team Secret alongside his Fnatic teammate Tal ‘Flyâ€?Aizik. 

That project did not end well, which led to the duo parting ways for a few months. They would reunite after The International 2015, creating OG. In the years after, N0tail and Fly led OG to multiple Valve Major victories, but not TI. That led to Fly leaving him in a sudden betrayal, but N0tail picked up the scraps and led OG to the TI8 and TI9 wins.

He is always a big name in the narratives about all-time greats as he experienced plenty of setbacks in his career. 

N0tail has a successful career to back his GOAT case

Despite all the setbacks, N0tail maintained his status as one of the most well-known Dota 2 players. The many victories at Valve Majors and TI made him the most successful esports player ever when it came to prize money. He is still unmatched today because of his achievements, which cements him as the greatest Dota 2 player ever.

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Esports has not been around for as long as traditional sports, but it has already delivered some unforgettable moments across various games. Some of these are considered landmark moments that have helped draw more attention to competitive gaming. 

Before diving into these moments, find out what makes a moment iconic.

What makes a moment iconic in esports?

Not every highlight goes down in history even though esports games are usually packed with exciting moments. For a play to be significant enough, it needs to be impactful to remain part of the ongoing conversation around the game. When fans discuss the game, that moment should be the first to come to mind.

One thing that makes a moment iconic is when it sparks a strong reaction from fans, as it captures the essence of what makes it exciting. It should be one of the standout examples everyone recalls when the game comes up in a conversation.

The Na’Vi Fountain Hook (Dota 2)

One of the most unforgettable and controversial moments in esports happened at The International 3 in a match between Natus Vincere and TongFu. This involved the Fountain Hook, an exploit that made use of Pudge’s Meat Hook and Chen’s Recall abilities.

Recall is designed to teleport allies back to the fountain, while the Meat Hook has a certain range where Pudge can hook enemies to him. With the Recall bringing Pudge to the fountain, it drags the enemy along to the fountain where enemies cannot escape from due to the fountain damage.

Na’Vi was on the verge of losing this match, but after using this tactic, they were able to turn the game around and win. That propelled them to reach the Grand Final where they would play the infamous series against fierce rivals, Alliance. However, this moment is not without its issues as many players around the TI player base argued it was unfair, but Valve allowed it to happen.

Daigo’s Evo Moment #37 (Street Fighter - FGC)

This is one of the most iconic moments that comes to mind when fighting games are discussed. At the most popular fighting game event in the world, Evo, Daigo Umehara pulled off one of the most impressive and jaw-dropping plays you would ever see. 

Down to a sliver of health, Daigo parried 15 hits from Justin Wong’s Chun-Li Super Art, which required frame-perfect precision and reaction speed. After the final parry, Daigo hit back with a combo to take the round and then the match. Wong could not do anything at the time, though he looks back now and laughs about it.

It is a moment remembered by many because of the incredible skills to pull it off, but also for the powerful emotions it can elicit from the audience. The fighting game community is one of the most passionate in esports, and that moment encapsulates what it means to be part of the FGC because raw talent, hype, and respect are part of that moment.

Coldzera’s jumping AWP play (Counter-Strike)

Brazil was a powerhouse nation during the Counter-Strike 1.6 days, but in the Global Offensive, they were lacking that star power. That all changed in 2015 and 2016 when Luminosity Gaming broke out as one of the best teams. It was further stamped during MLG Columbus 2016 when they had a moment that defined their dominance during that year.

That was when Marcelo ‘coldzeraâ€?David was watching the apartments section of the Mirage map. When Team Liquid tried to break through his defence with his AWP, coldzera pulled off the impossible by getting four frags, two of which came in one jumping shot from his AWP. 

The AWP requires precision to deal big damage, but coldzera hits those shots without using the scope. He completely turned the tide of the series, as LG came back from 9-15 down to win Mirage. That eventually led to a series victory and them taking the tournament. Brazil would become one of the strongest countries in CS:GO, which raised the level for everyone else.

Faker’s miraculous play against Ryu (League of Legends)

Few names are as synonymous with League of Legends as Lee ‘Fakerâ€?Sang-hyeok. While his achievements have cemented his legendary status, he was already pulling off some iconic moments early in his career. In 2013, SK Telecom T1 was playing against KT’s Ryu ‘Ryuâ€?Sang-wook and beat him in a flashy one-on-one play. 

In most cases, Ryu would win the matchup against Faker, but with pixel-perfect decision-making, Faker came out on top. He danced around Ryu’s abilities and punished him for extending too far from the safety zone. It was a perfect display of skill, which became more normalised with Faker through the years.

This moment played a major role in Faker’s rise in the scene, proving he deserved to be called a superstar. He went on to dominate the League of Legends scene in the following decade, eventually winning five World Championships.

The esports industry will continue to deliver big moments

In esports, there is always a fun match yet to be played—one that’s bound to capture everyone’s attention. As the industry evolves, the popular games now might be replaced by new titles in the future, which will bring their own legendary moments. It will be interesting to see many more iconic moments emerging and becoming a big part of why esports is popular in the future.

With all of these moments, it is fair to say that esports has become one of the most exciting parts of the gaming industry. From massive audiences in the stadiums and online, the enthusiasm for esports will keep growing. Esports is here to stay, and these iconic moments play a big role in that longevity.

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Despite N0tail’s return to the competitive scene and high expectations from the fans, OG’s newly formed Western European DOTA 2 roster failed to secure a position in FISSURE Universe Episode 5's next stage. After getting defeated by AVULUS, they fell to 5th-6th place. 

During the tournament, they’ve shown promise. For their first two matches, they secured two draws from Edge and MOUZ. After that, they lost to the undefeated Virtus.pro. Despite the upsets, they won against Runa Team 2-0. Their 1-2-1 (1 win, 2 draws, and 1 defeat) put them on the edge of the qualifiers.

On the next stage, they faced the Shopify Rebellion, where they were defeated 2-1. Their two back-to-back defeats against Shopify Rebellion and AVULUS led to them failing to qualify.

The team proved they could compete with less experienced squads but had trouble against well-practised teams with more experience in big tournaments like the ever-impressive Virtus.pro, AVULUS, and SR. 

Now, everyone is looking forward to their performance at The International Western Europe Qualifiers, which will run from June 13 to 17. They are one of the invited teams alongside Nigma Galaxy, MOUZ, and AVULUS. 

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BLAST Slam III was another big event on the Dota 2 esports calendar, with plenty of teams vying for the title. It was Tundra Esports who came away with the victory, which marks their second-straight victory at a BLAST Slam event after they won the second edition in February 2025. 

It was their third overall tournament win as they also won FISSURE Playground 1 in February. This has been a strong year for Tundra, as they continue their momentum into The International season, Dota 2’s biggest event, which will be held in September 2025 in Germany.

A masterful win for Tundra

The final was between Tundra and Team Falcons. It ended in four games, as people saw Tundra win the first two matches of the best-of-five series. Falcons tried to claw their way back with a Game 3 win, but it was not enough to stop Tundra from winning Game 4 and the event. 

Bozhidar ‘bzm�Bogdanov stood out in the series for Tundra, as he used Beastmaster and Invoker to their peak potential. It was a strong performance from everyone at Tundra, which cements them at the top of European Dota 2.

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Thai Dota 2 player Nuengnara �3savage�Teeramahanon has returned to Talon Esports to compete in the new season. After seven months playing in Europe, 23savage is back in Southeast Asia on loan from OG to help Talon strengthen their roster.

23savage joined OG in late 2024, hoping to take on new challenges. He played with big names like Leon ‘Nine�Kirilin and Sébastien ‘Ceb�Debs. However, the team didn’t perform well and missed key tournaments, including ESL One Bangkok 2024. In March 2025, OG released its players after poor results.

Now, 23savage is back with Talon. He will play with midlaner Mikoto from Indonesia, team captain KuKu from the Philippines, offlaner Ws from Malaysia, and support player Jhocam from Indonesia.

Fans are excited to see 23savage return. He played a big role in Talon’s success, helping them finish third at the Lima Major and Riyadh Masters 2023. The Thai star also holds the top spot on the Southeast Asia MMR leaderboard.

Talon will compete in DreamLeague Season 26 starting May 19. The team aims to qualify for the Esports World Cup 2025 in Riyadh this July.

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After three years of taking a break from the esports scene, the two-time The International (TI) champion, Johan ‘N0tail�Sundstein, will return as OG’s Western European team coach and project lead for the organisation's Dota 2 division. 

In an X (formerly Twitter) post on May 6, the team released a short video about his return. In the video, N0tail stated ‘We're starting anew, starting with a new project. I'm going to be leading the ship as the coach, also trying to put the project together,�hinting at a much bigger project to be released in the future. 

The International (TI) 2025 preparations

As of now, there are no announcements regarding OG’s roster for the TI 2025. Moreover, Johan hopes to qualify for the upcoming tournament as the new team’s head coach. 

In an interview, he stated, ‘We're hoping to qualify to TI and place in the top. I mean, to play the best Dota in the world for me is the aspiration. It is the goal. I think I got the record, maybe it's still holding, I don't really know.�nbsp;

N0tail has proven himself as a leader when they won the 2018 and 2019 TI championships, but this time, he’ll be the coach instead of a player. 

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The esports industry, with its multiple genres and various domestic tournaments within each game, captures just about everyone’s attention in the gaming world. Whether fans are into the FPS scene or the MOBA craze, esports is known for its wide stage that allows different types of pro players to shine in their respective games.

These individuals are not only the best in their games, but they could also be considered the best in the industry. Learn more about these iconic esports players and why they’re considered legends.

Lee ‘Faker�Sang-hyeok (League of Legends)

The greatest League of Legends player ever, Lee ‘Faker�Sang-hyeok, is unmatched in his achievements. It is hard not to pick him as the best player due to his unprecedented success with 10 LCK titles, two Mid-Season Invitational wins, and five World Championship titles.

His trophy case is superb, which rightfully earned him a place as League’s greatest-ever player. In League, Faker was known as ‘The Unkillable Demon King�due to his off-the-charts skills. He could out-play almost every opponent and remained a strong leader from the mid-lane. Faker can also play any champion at the highest level.

Considering he is the best player in League history, he could also be considered the greatest in esports history. League of Legends is the most popular game in the esports industry, so Faker is an optimal choice for being one of the best players across many esports games.

Johan ‘N0tail�Sundstein (Dota 2)

Finding his start in esports as a Heroes of Newerth (HoN) player, N0tail moved to Dota 2 in 2012. He played for Fnatic early on alongside fellow HoN legend Tal ‘Flyâ€?Aizik. During his early years, N0tail thrived as a position four support. He was superb at it, especially when he played heroes such as Io and Chen. 

When their time at Fnatic ended, Fly and N0tail moved to Team Secret, which was an unsuccessful stint for them. However, they finally found a home when they created Monkey Business, a team better known today as OG. 

With OG, they would win multiple Dota 2 Majors together, but never The International. Fly would then suddenly leave before the 2018 TI, but N0tail picked up the pieces and became the team captain. He would lead the team to back-to-back TI victories as the captain, beating Fly along the way. 

N0tail is not just a fantastic player who played almost every position. He was also a true leader. He has stepped away from competitive play for a long while, but he remains the highest-earning esports player ever, with US$7,184,163.05 in prize money in his name.

Oleksandr ‘s1mple�Kostyliev (Counter-Strike)

In terms of skill ceiling, it is hard to go against Oleksandr ‘s1mple�Kostyliev in Counter-Strike. He was a rising star in the CIS region during the mid-2010s. He is equally skilled with rifles and the AWP, which makes him one of the most explosive players in esports history.

Whether it’s Global Offensive or Counter-Strike 2, s1mple has always been a fantastic player. His biggest achievement to this day is winning the 2021 PGL Stockholm Major with Natus Vincere. Of course, the Intel Grand Slam trophy was also won in 2021, cementing s1mple as arguably the greatest player not only in CS but in esports. 

Lee ‘Flash�Young-ho (StarCraft)

As one of the original esports games, StarCraft: Brood War was always seen as the pinnacle of individual skill in competitive gaming. Lee ‘Flashâ€?Young-ho is considered the greatest in StarCraft history because he had unmatched skill with his micromanagement of units and trophies. 

His most successful year was 2010 when he reached the finals of eight major events and won five titles. He moved to StarCraft II in 2012, winning IEM Toronto in 2014, but he retired in 2015 before returning to Brood War in 2016. With that kind of mechanical ability, it is hard to go against Flash as one of the best in esports history.

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BetBoom Team has been a super team in Eastern Europe for a while now, but they needed to prove it on the big stage. They had a superb run in the FISSURE Universe: Episode 4 event, which they capped off with a dominant 3-0 sweep over the Gaimin Gladiators (GG) in the Grand Final.

This was an impressive result for BetBoom as they only lost one game during the Playoff stage. It was a stellar upper bracket run for BetBoom, as they dispatched Team Spirit and Tidebound in two clean 2� series before beating GG 2-1 and 3-0 in the Upper Bracket Final and Grand Final, respectively.

BetBoom’s huge reward for winning

FISSURE Universe: Episode 4 was a massive tournament for Dota 2 teams, with a US$500,000 prize pool. BetBoom won the US$250,000 reward, while Gaimin Gladiators won US$100,000. Tidebound and Falcons took home US$60,000 and US$30,000, respectively.

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Asian Champions League (ACL) announces a new Dota 2 tournament. It also assures that the top team will have direct qualification to the prestigious Esports World Championship (EWC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Top esports teams are shooting for a share of the total prize pool of $250,000 (£193,983). The winner is guaranteed to take home $100,000 (£77,593).

Starting on Friday, March 7, 2025, Online Qualifiers will run until March 30. For each week, a champion team will move to the next stage. Only four teams will advance.

For the Finals set to occur on May 1 to 3, the four teams from the Qualifiers will have to face the invited top esports teams, namely Xtreme Gaming (XG), Team YB, Tidebound, and another team to be announced.

Finals winners will also be qualified for the upcoming DreamLeague Season 26.

The top 4 teams from the Finals will head to the Grand Finals. The four teams compete against each other until one is hailed as the winner. After deliberations, the sole winner of the Grand Finals will be qualified to compete in the much-awaited EWC.

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Team Spirit snatched the DreamLeague Season 25 title with a 3-2 win over Tundra Esports. The intense series showcased standout plays, notably from TSpirit captain and two-time Internationals champ Yaroslav ‘Miposhka�Naidenov, whose Jakiro play was crucial in the final game.

TSpirit received a total grand prize of $290,000 and 4,620 ESL Pro Tour (EPT) points that secured them a direct invite to Riyadh Masters 2025. This win also ended their 10-month dry spell since the 1win Series Dota 2 Summer in June 2024. 

The grand finals saw a push-and-pull battle, with Tundra initially taking the lead. However, Team Spirit responded with strong teamwork and strategic plays. Miposhka’s Jakiro dominated in the last bit, which helped his team turn the odds in their favour and secure the title.

However, the finals did not go as smoothly as planned. The supposed finals match on March 2 was moved to March 4. A series of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks targeted TSpirit players, causing a two-day delay.

Meanwhile, after winning back-to-back victories at Fissure Playground #1 and BLAST Slam II, Tundra’s winning streak has ended. The team placed second with a $130,000 cash prize and 3,920 EPT points. 

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