by Western European esports organization Entity have announced the signing of Ivan “Pure” Moskalenko to their Dota 2 roster. There have been rumors surrounding the acquisition for a while, which have now been confirmed.
Entity made the announcement via Twitter: “New Tour, New Carry. We’re excited to announce that Pure will be our new carry player. Welcome to the squad, Ivan ??”
The 18-year-old was dismissed from his former team Virtus.pro after his actions resulted in their disqualification from the Eastern Europe Dota Pro Circuit Regional Finals.
Pure drew a “Z” symbol during a pause in a live match, which is known to be a militarist symbol used by the Russian government. The same has also been said to be used in campaigns that support the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Although the symbol that was drawn on the mini map was quickly covered up by other Virtus.pro players, it was already spotted by commentators and viewers. A Ukrainian commentator immediately called for their ban.
“So this is what you get in game when you allow players from orgs that support the war in Ukraine to play in a tournaments,” Vitalii Volochai wrote on Twitter.
“Pure, Virtus Pro player, draws a Z symbol in game. Symbol that supports the war and Russian army killing Ukrainians.”
“They should be banned. Indefinetely.”
Regardless, Entity moved forward with his signing even though they were “fully aware of the PR nightmare”. The team needed someone to fill the void Remco “Crystallis” Arets left and, after looking through several options, decided Pure was the best fit.
According to Entity, the youngster was naive and did not have any ill-intent towards anyone, a conclusion they came to after conversations with Pure.
“We believe that the mistake he made was not small, but we also believe that it was not big enough for him to lose his potential Dota 2 career as an 18-year-old talent,” the team said in a statement.
“The team and the players made the decision to support and compete alongside Ivan, we stand behind him and hope the community can understand.”
Their actions have been met with heavy backlash in the Dota community. Many have pointed out that Pure has not shown any remorse since it happened, saying his statement following the incident was him trying to downplay his actions with no apology tendered.
Entity have also been called out for not focusing more on the people affected in the ongoing war but paying more attention to Pure’s talents. However, some have stood with the team, saying that it was a genuine mistake from a young man who probably did not know any better.
Virtus.pro’s decision to release Pure from their roster was solely at the organization’s discretion. Seeing as the disqualification was the only punishment doled out by the league organizers, the Russian was free to sign with any other team.
One thing is clear: Entity are looking to be as competitive as possible for the next tour regardless of the PR circus. They finished sixth in the WEU Tour 2, failing to qualify for the ESL One Stockholm 2022.
