Things heated up even before the match. A shocking incident took place during the PGL Wallachia Season 2 Dota 2 tournament that raised concern from players and the community. Reports entangled AVALUS Sonneiko and Team Falcons ATF in an alleged physical confrontation before their match. With this, AVALUS faced serious consequences and eventually cost them their match against Team Falcons. This serious event got the fans questioning the organizers on the tournament security and player conduct as to how the incident escalated into this.
The Incident
Based on the reports, the confrontation took place on October 6, 2024, prior to AVALUS scheduled match against the Team Falcons. In their initial statements released, it was SoNNeikO that approached ATF in a lobby in Bucharest, Romania. He allegedly put his arm around ATF’s shoulder as he allegedly threatened to punch and put him in the ground. Moreover, it said that the roots for the altercation began with their online dispute three months ago.
Conflicting Accounts
There are two sides to a story. However, a clear picture is barely formed despite both parties presenting their accounts of the incident. It appears that the players’ statements are conflicting, which made it difficult to come up with definite conclusions on what transpired between them.
ATF claimed the incident to stem out from their pub game that occurred three months ago. Tension rose between them in their online dispute, where he had called SoNNeikO “braindead.” With this, he received threatening messages from the latter on his X (formerly, Twitter), which he had interpreted as mere banter.
In his statement, he further shared details of their altercation. While in the hotel lobby, SoNNeikO approached him and made physical contact before issuing threats against him. This happened despite the attempts of the AVALUS staff to intervene between them. Yet, in a response made by SoNNeikO, he claimed a different perspective on the situation that happened.
He admitted to sending ATF a message after their pub game incident but denied that he made physical threats. Rather, he actually wished to have a face-to-face conversation with the Falcons’ ATF out of their shared Muslim faith and respect. In regards to their PGL incident, he asserts that it was ATF and his teammate Oliver “skiter” Lepko who have taken things further. According to him, ATF started yelling, “Punch me, go on, punch me right here,” to urge him while Skiter used provocative language against him.
Tournament Organizer’s Response
Fortunately, the tournament organizer, PGL, swiftly took action to the incident that transpired before the teams stepped on stage. They issued a Level 3 Penalty to AVALUS for their entire series against Team Falcons. Due to this penalty, the team received a 110-second reduction in their bonus drafting time. In addition, PGL were firm and quick to condemn the behavior of the players involved. They affirm that the incident is against their sportsmanship values and upheld respect in their tournaments.
Consequences and Reactions
With this, it left the Dota 2 community taken aback and resulted in divided reactions. Some expressed their support for ATF, while the others questioned the severity of punishment imposed for AVALUS.
The midlaner for Gaimin Gladiators, Quinn “Quinn” Callahan, commented on the issue to weigh in on the situation. He stated that a disqualification from the entire tournament should have been the appropriate response after the incident. Further, there must be a line drawn between online trash talk and real-life physical threats. In this case, the threats should not have taken place from the start.
Nevertheless, the penalty left the AVALUS in a significant disadvantage throughout their match against Team Falcons. It eventually resulted in a tough series loss of 2-0 that put them at a disadvantage. On the other side, Team Falcons raised concern about their players safety and are considering withdrawing from the tournament.
Moving Forward
As the tournament continues, it is inevitable to see tensions rise between players and teams. However, the altercation between AVALUS Sonneiko and Team Falcons ATF is a reminder of how rash actions led to serious consequences. It is important for players to exhibit sportsmanship and professionalism throughout their esports career. Besides, the organizers must also be active in resolving such disputes to avoid similar occurrences in the future.
As of now, there are no following statements from either side about Team Falcons potential withdrawal and further punishment for AVALUS.