Streamer Max "qojqva" Broker and commentator Niklas "Wagamama" Högström announced that they will not attend the upcoming Games of the Future 2025 Dota 2 event, posting their decisions on the social platform X.
qojqva said he decided to withdraw from the tournament after learning about certain circumstances surrounding the event over the past couple of days.
Wagamama wrote that he had genuinely wanted to compete against everyone at the upcoming showmatch-style event but ultimately chose not to participate. He added that he hopes another organizer will try to put together a similar all-star tournament in the future.
The withdrawals follow broader criticism after the event's roster was revealed: several community figures said they considered taking part unacceptable because the tournament is run by Russian organizers. As a result, the lineup featuring Topias "Topson" Taavitsainen, Sebastian "Ceb" Debs and Johan "n0tail" Sundstein declined to participate. They explained their decision by saying they had reviewed new information that was not available when they first accepted the invitation.
The Dota 2 tournament at Games of the Future 2025 is scheduled to take place from December 13 to 20. Matches are planned to be held on LAN at the ADNEC Centre in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and the event's prize pool is set at $175,000.