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"We've never ceased to evolve": Team Spirit on six years of success
Team Spirit might be the biggest name in Dota 2 right now, but it wasn't always this way. Here, the team reflect on their journey to becoming world champions.
Team Spirit recently stunned the world of Dota 2 esports with their hard-fought win at The International 10, going from relative underdogs to world champions. While the team might only just have become household names, their success in Bucharest, Romania, was the culmination of six years of hard work and development.
"The most important achievement is that we've got a team of like-minded people that we're constantly trying to expand and develop," says Ruslana 'DKLana' Berest, team manager. "And in terms of gaming achievements, the biggest would be our win in TI10."
Like any esports team, Team Spirit has gone through its fair share of roster changes, eventually landing on the winning combination in 2021. Starting in 2015 under CEO Nikita 'Cheshir' Chukalin, the Russian team formed with a number of players from teams like Cyber Anji, Polarity, Team Empire and LQ. It wasn't until 2020 that the team we know today started to take shape.
We're not going to rest on our laurels
"We've never ceased to evolve," continues DKLana. "We've always looked for talented gamers, and it's always been our goal to compete for the top spots at international tournaments in all possible disciplines. It's great that we've managed to bring together such a great team capable of new achievements."
At the tail end of 2020, the organisation found the combination of players they had been looking for. In a major overhaul, the team signed the roster of Yellow Submarine, including Illya 'Yatoro' Mulyarchuk, Alexander 'TORONTOTOKYO' Khertek, Magomed 'Collapse' Khalilov and new captain, Yaroslav 'Miposhka' Naidenov.
But the team's success was far from instant. The 2021 Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season was difficult, with the squad finishing just fourth place in the ESL One CIS Upper Division as the first season came to a close in late February, failing to qualify for the ONE Esports Singapore Major, the first Major of the 2021 DPC. However, before the second season, Team Spirit found the missing piece to the puzzle – Miroslaw 'Mira' Kolpakov.
The team showed an improved performance in the second season, finishing second behind Virtus.Pro, qualifying for the WePlay AniMajor Group Stage. Team Spirit battled their way through the group stage but was eventually ejected from the Lower Bracket Round 2 knockout stage by Vici Gaming. With the second and final Major of the year done and dusted, Team Spirit ended up just winning 200 DPC points to add to their total, but that wasn't enough to secure them a direct invitation to The International. In fact, they had to fight through the Eastern European qualifiers and work their way through a crowded pack that included the likes of HellRaisers and a nail-biting 3-2 final against Team Empire.
After this mixed result, it's easy to see why the world was stunned by their momentum in TI10. They finished fourth in their group during the Group Stage, narrowly slipping into the Main Event behind PSG.LGD, Team Secret and Vici Gaming. And it was almost all over after their first match, where Invictus Gaming knocked Team Spirit down to the lower bracket, where every single game was a matter of life or death. But their lower bracket campaign saw Team Spirit silence their demons with a win over Virtus.Pro and scored victories over top-tier international teams like OG and Invictus Gaming. And in the grand final, Team Spirit took on PSG.LGD once more in a five-game thriller that saw the Eastern Europeans beat the odds to lift the Aegis of Champions.
"I don't think we've actually really come to terms with what just happened," says Collapse. "Even when we raised the Aegis over our head, it was hard to believe it was really happening."
Team Spirit lifts the Aegis
© dota2ti
And just like that, Team Spirit was, in the eyes of many, the best Dota team in the world. But even now, the team are reluctant to dwell too long on their success. Instead, they assure us that they're already thinking about the challenges ahead.
"It was really great. But first and foremost, it's a huge responsibility," says coach Airat 'Silent' Gaziev. "Now, in every tournament and every match, we have to prove we deserve the cup and never lower the bar. It's easy to get to the top. It's far harder to stay there."
"Naturally, when you start doing esports professionally, your ultimate goal is always to win at TI," adds Yatoro. "But it doesn't mean that your life ends after you win. We want to play Dota 2. We just really like this game. So we want to win as many tournaments as we're capable of winning. It would be great to compete for the win TI again."
It's easy to get to the top, it's far harder to stay there
"We're not going to rest on our laurels," agrees TORONTOTOKYO. "There are a lot of tournaments that we want to win in the future to remain on top in Dota."
So just what has been the key to Team Spirit's success? A big part of it is likely down to the positive environment that the organisation provides for its players and staff, which places a strong focus on physical and psychological health.
"We're really happy that it was with this organisation that we've managed to go so far," says Miposhka. "Most of our team don't have much experience with other organisations. But I would like to wish every professional gamer to find their own organisation. One that you will be comfortable with both professionally and psychologically. It's a key recipe for success."
Audiences love watching Team Spirit compete
© Victor Engström/Red Bull Content Pool
No matter what lies ahead for Team Spirit, their fans' full support and love will be behind them – which is a feeling the team and management reciprocate.
"We're very happy that you've been with us all these years," says Team Spirit's Dota 2 manager Dmitry 'Korb3n' Belov. "All the gamers and all the management feel your support, and we always want to earn your trust, and your support is one of the reasons that we keep trying to be the best. Keep on supporting Spirit."
