Oldest active Dota 2 pro players
Dota 2 is a game with a very interesting and rich history. And one of its main components is esports. Throughout its history, many legendary players have emerged, with their ups and downs. Many of them have disappeared and now work as analysts in studios, stream, or just enjoy real life.
It is now customary to say that modern Dota 2 is a game for the young. But there are those for whom age is just a number in their biography. Having an impressive track record, some players are still actively playing on the competitive scene. They are the ones we will focus on.
This article presents the top 11 oldest active professional players in Dota 2. But first, some criteria should be outlined, based on which the selection was made:
the player must be officially part of a team in the Dota Pro Circuit Division I or II
the total amount of prize money earned must be 400-500 thousand dollars or more
Therefore, some well-known Dota veterans will not be included here.
11. Fly
Tal «Fly» Aizik
Born: March 9, 1993
Age: 30
Career start: 2012
Total Winnings (approx.): $2,716,018
Current team: Shopify Rebellion
Fly has an impressive track record in his career as a professional gamer. He started his journey in Dota 2 with Fnatic, alongside N0tail, also known as BigDaddy. They then played for Team Secret and later created their own team, monkey Business, which eventually became OG.
In 2018, after a series of setbacks, Fly and s4 left OG just before the qualifiers for The International 2018. The outcome of this decision is already written in the history of the professional Dota 2 scene. Although Fly did not become a champion, he still managed to take 3rd place at TI8.
After several years with Evil Geniuses, move to Talon Esports and back again, Fly is now playing for a top team in North America, as usual. This time, the former EG roster is competing under the tag Shopify Rebellion.
10. Funn1k
Glib «Funn1k» Lipatnikov
Born: November 16, 1992
Age: 31
Career start: 2011
Total Winnings (approx.): $468,132
Current team: B8
This Ukrainian player began his career by participating in local Dota 2 tournaments. In 2012, Funn1k joined a mix led by the champion of The International 2011 - Artstyle. Although they only placed 9-12th at TI2, Gleb caught the attention of other CIS organizations. This led him to Team Empire, and then he was invited to Natus Vincere. Together with legends such as XBOCT, Dendi, KuroKy, and Puppey, he made it to the grand finals of TI3, where the team lost to Alliance.
After two years of playing for NaVi, he left the organization in 2015 and began playing in different mixes. Currently, Funn1k is playing in the DPC NA Div I with his long-time teammate.
9. kaka
Hu «kaka» Liangzhi
Born: November 7, 1992
Age: 31
Career start: 2013
Total Winnings (approx.): $2,447,378
Current team: Xtreme Gaming
Even before the start of his professional career, Kaka was a well-known pub player in China, often ranking high on leaderboards. His first team was HyperGloryTeam, with whom he achieved decent results in China. After TI5, he moved to EHOME, where Kaka won several tournaments within the country. In 2016, he joined Newbee, where he found great teammates. As Kaka noted, during that period he played with tremendous pleasure. This was likely one of the factors that helped Newbee take second place at The International 2017, losing to the next veteran Dota 2 player on our list.
After a disappointment at TI8, he moved to Keen Gaming. Another failure at The International and he was invited to Invictus Gaming, but the results were average. In 2021, Invictus Gaming made it to the finals of the ONE Esports Singapore Major 2021, and after an incredible comeback, they were able to defeat Evil Geniuses. At The International 2021, the iG team lost to the future champions Team Spirit, finishing in 4th place and earning $2.4 million.
Currently, Kaka is part of Xtreme Gaming and is trying to climb to the top of the DPC Division I in China region, which recently experienced a wave of bans. Fortunately, Kaka was not affected.
8. KuroKy
Kuro «KuroKy» Takhasomi
Born: October 28, 1992
Age: 31
Career start: 2011
Total Winnings (approx.): $5,286,224
Current team: Nigma Galaxy
KuroKy began his Dota 2 career in 2011, playing for various European teams before joining mousesports in 2012. He then moved to Natus Vincere, where he reached the final of The International 2013.
Later, KuroKy played for Team Secret before moving to Team Liquid, where he led the team to win several tournaments. His most significant achievement came in 2017 when he led Team Liquid to victory at The International 2017. They finished 4th at TI8 and 2nd at TI9 before leaving the organization to form Team Nigma.
In addition to his competitive success, KuroKy has also made significant contributions to the Dota 2 community in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). After signing several sponsorship contracts, his team changed its name to Nigma Galaxy.
Despite a rough patch in his career, roster issues, and the loss of key players, KuroKy and Nigma are still in decent form and playing in the first division of the Dota Pro Circuit.
7. s4
Gustav «s4» Magnusson
Born: April 1, 1992
Age: 31 years
Career start: 2012
Total Winnings (approx.): $2,737,775
Current team: Alliance
It's hard to imagine Alliance without s4, just as it's hard to imagine him not being a part of the organization. It's all because of The International 2013 and the legendary grand final that forever went down in history as one of the most spectacular. And wherever Gustav went, after all the highs and lows, he always returned to Alliance.
From 2016 to 2018, he played for OG, and then together with Fly, he moved to Evil Geniuses. In 2020, he returned to Alliance, but the results were not the same. After an unsuccessful period, he was kicked out of the team. However, he and a couple of former teammates formed a new lineup, qualified for the DPC.
Interestingly, the new and partly old Alliance roster, which competed under the goonsquad tag, simultaneously moved up to the first division and also fell back to Division II of Western Europe.
After a failure at The International 2022: Western Europe Qualifier and reshuffles, he is once again playing for Alliance in the new Dota Pro Circuit season.
6. Kingrd
Danylo "Kingrd" Nascimento
Born: January 2, 1992
Age: 32 years old
Career Start: 2013
Total Earnings: $234,275
Last Team: Keyd Stars
Danylo "Kingrd" Nascimento is renowned for his mastery in the support position. He last played for Keyd Stars but has currently put his career on hold.
He debuted in the professional scene in 2013 with paiN Gaming, quickly making a name for himself. Subsequently, he moved to CNB e-Sports Club in March 2014 but returned to his previous team in September of the same year.
With paiN Gaming, Kingrd won the Brasil Game Cup 2014. In 2015, he briefly left the team to play for T Show before rejoining and helping secure victory at the Brasil Game Cup 2016.
In November of the same year, he began collaborating with SG e-sports, reaching the top 8 at The Kiev Major 2017. In September, Kingrd joined Digital Chaos.SA before returning to paiN once again. With them, he became a finalist at the World Electronic Sports Games 2017 and won bronze at ESL One Birmingham 2018. The team also managed to qualify for The International 2018, finishing in 17th-18th place.
The latest team for the esports athlete was Keyd Stars, from which he departed in December 2023.
5. eyyou
Nico «eyyou» Barcelon
Born: November 12, 1991
Age: 32
Career start: 2015
Total Winnings (approx.): $426,494
Current team: Blacklist International
Unexpectedly, eyyou is on this list. However, if you study his biography and achievements, there's absolutely nothing surprising here. Nico began his journey as a professional Dota 2 player in 2015, playing for TNC Predator for some time. After finishing 7th-8th place at TI6, he left the team and tried himself in other orgs, but often returned to TNC Predator as a coach and substitute.
After 2020, he took a two-year break. He returned as a player of Polaris Esports, and then joined Blacklist International and now plays in the Southeast Asian DPC Division I. Although eyyou didn't receive as much hype, he simply plays Dota, and has played for a long time and not bad.
4. Solo
Alexey «Solo» Berezin
Born: August 7, 1990
Age: 33
Career start: 2012
Total Winnings (approx.): $1,828,104
Current team: HellRaisers
The oldest and most successful captain from the CIS region. The living meme of "322", who after his mistake, took a second chance and cleared his name. He achieved the greatest success in Virtus.pro, assembling the "Golden roster" and winning five majors with the team. He also reached 5-6th place twice at The International in 2017 and 2018.
Interesting fact: he owns a Mercedes Benz car, which he received as an MVP award at ESL One Hamburg 2017.
Now a deserved retirement of the CIS Dota actively trains and plays for HellRaisers, where he once again shows his skills against teams from Eastern Europe.
3. iceiceice
Daryl «iceiceice» Koh
Born on June 17, 1990
Age: 33
Career start: 2011
Total Winnings (approximately): $1,810,441
Current team: Bleed Esports
Iceiceice is a veteran Dota 2 player from Singapore who began his journey in Dota 2 with a third-place finish at The International 2011. He has since climbed to the top with teams like Team Zenith, Team DK, Vici Gaming, EHOME, Team Faceless, Mineski, and Fnatic. His recent major accomplishments were with Evil Geniuses, but his time with Team Secret was not successful.
Currently, iceiceice is playing for Bleed Esports with other players from Southeast Asia. Well, let's wish him success in the first division of DPC.
2. Puppey
Clement «Puppey» Ivanov
Born: March 6, 1990
Age: 33
Career start: 2011
Total Winnings (approx.): $4,222,861
Current team: Team Secret
The legendary captain from Estonia, a regular participant of The International. He gathered the best of the best and climbed the heights of Dota. At some point, his team was considered unbeatable, the raid boss of Europe.
Throughout his career, he played for only two organizations: Natus Vincere and Team Secret. In 2014, Puppey assembled the first Secret roster, which included KuroKy, BigDaddy (N0tail), Fly and s4. Although the lineups often changed, the organization itself remained among the top.
Currently, Puppey is going through tough times. The loss of key players, problems within the team, and the second division of DPC WEU. Nevertheless, he is still in the game and seems ready to bring his team back to the top of Europe.
1. Dendi
Danil «Dendi» Ishutin
Born: December 30, 1989
Age: 34
Career start: 2011
Total Winnings (approx.): $809,157
Current team: B8
A living legend of Dota 2. It's not hard to guess that Danylo is not young, especially considering that he actively played DotA back in 2006 and was the champion of the first The International in 2011.
A fan favorite both in-game and on social media, he is a player, captain of his own team, and holder of the record for the longest losing streak. He actively streams, creates videos and other content for his beloved fans.
Recently, he moved to North America with his team B8, where they play in the first division of the Dota Pro Circuit.
After all these years, he still plays Dota 2. Dendi simply lives and breathes this game, and the mid lane is his home. And that's why he's loved, no matter what.
Recently, Dendi reached one million followers on Twitch. He was congratulated by many famous streamers and players. Even the head of Valve, Gabe Newell, couldn't miss this opportunity.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is worth noting that in the world of Dota 2, there is a phenomenon where some players continue to actively compete even after reaching the age of 30. However, due to the physical and strategic demands of the game, many of them transition into roles as team captains in the support position. This is explained by their rich experience, strategic thinking, and ability to effectively coordinate the team during gameplay.
Moreover, as they age, many professional Dota 2 players move into coaching roles. Their extensive gaming experience, understanding of the meta-game, and analytical skills make them valuable members of teams, helping to develop and improve gaming strategies, tactics, and mechanics for team members.
Thus, regardless of age, experienced players continue to be in demand in the world of professional Dota 2, contributing as player-captains and coaches, fostering the development and prosperity of teams and the entire professional community.
