The Dota 2 Arlington Major kicks off this week, but to the disappointment of fans, several players will be missing out owing to visa troubles. Keep reading to find out which players have been called last minute for the final Major before The International 11.
Top-tier Dota 2 is returning to North America for the first time since the Boston Major in 2016. However, the event has left a sour taste in the community’s mouth because of visa issues affecting a number of teams.
Xtreme Gaming have been forced to withdraw from the Arlington Major, while six other teams have already announced stand-ins for the event, which will begin on August 4.
Stand-ins at the Dota 2 Arlington Major
Apart from Xtreme Gaming, another team facing massive troubles owing to the United States visa issues is Fnatic. The Southeast Asian Dota 2 roster will be competing at the Arlington Major with three stand-ins as Marc ‘Raven’ Fausto, Armel ‘Armel’ Tabios, and Jaunuel ‘Jaunuel’ Arcilla will miss out on the tournament. Fnatic have yet to announce the players who will be standing in at the Major.
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The list of other players affected by the ongoing visa troubles includes star players like RNG’s Daniel ‘Ghost’ Chan Kok Hong, Thunder Awaken’s Herrera ‘Darkmago’ Gonzalo, and Entity’s Ivan ‘Pure’ Moskalenko.
The continuous troubles will even see Thunder Awaken miss out on the first day of the group stage and forfeit the match against Talon Esports.
Here’s a list of all the players who will be replaced at the Arlington Major along with the designated stand-ins:
| Team | Unavailable player | Stand-in |
| OG | Mikhail ‘Misha’ Agatov | Sebastien ‘Ceb’ Debs |
| RNG | Daniel ‘Ghost’ Chan Kok Hong | Anathan ‘ana’ Pham |
| Talon Esports | Worawit ‘Q’ Mekchai | Kenny ‘Xepher’ Deo |
| Entity | Ivan ‘Pure’ Moskalenko | Jonas ‘SabeRLight-‘ Volek |
| Thunder Awaken | Herrera ‘DarkMago’ Gonzalo | Ricardo ‘Alone’ Fernandez |
| Fnatic | Marc ‘Raven’ Fausto | TBD |
| Fnatic | Armel ‘Armel’ Tabios | TBD |
| Fnatic | Jaunuel ‘Jaunuel’ Arcilla | TBD |
While the Arlington Major will end up missing out on various regular players, the list of stand-ins is definitely something for the community to look forward to. With players like ana and Ceb making a return, and Fnatic yet to announce their stand-ins, make sure to keep an eye out on all the matches from August 4.