Satanic takes the top spot in European Dota 2 Leaderboards

2024 promises to be an exciting one for Dota 2 fans. A MENA team has clinched the top spot in a tier 1 tournament, marking a significant milestone. In Western Europe, there is a three-way power struggle going on in the Dota 2 leaderboards.

The coveted title of the top-ranked player in the region is currently under threat. Alimzhan "Watson" Islambekov, who held the title, has already been dethroned twice in the last two months.

His latest defeat came from a 17-year-old Eastern European prodigy, Alan "Satanic" Galliamov, who successfully dethroned him to take the top spot in the European Dota 2 leaderboard.

Watson has been dethroned again. This time it was by a 17-year-old.
Credits: Twitter.@EntityDota

Galliamov has been rapidly climbing the Dota 2 rank ladder over the past two years. When he successfully pushed past the top 50 rank in Europe last, the young prodigy garnered attention from many veterans.

The current Dota 2 Leaderboards after Satanic took the top 1 spot from Watson.
Image Source: Screen Capture of Dota 2 Leaderboards from Valve.

Watson held Europe’s throne for the entire year in 2023. Back then, he also had a smurf, which was ranked second in Europe. Thus, the player was uncontested for nearly an entire year.

Valve’s Magic

Valve has made its stance crystal clear. (Credit: Valve).

In late 2023, Valve banned smurf accounts in Dota 2. The action caused a major shift in the game's ranked leaderboard. It affected players like Alimzhan, who no longer had the option of using alternate accounts. While some professional players faced difficulties queuing for rank matches without their smurf accounts, some saw this as an opportunity to prove their skills and challenge the throne.

The First Contender for the Throne

Quinn is one of the breakout midlaners in 2023. he earned an esports player of the year nomination.
Credits: Twitter/ @GaiminGladiator

As mentioned above, Satanic is not the first player to de-throne Watson from his top spot. In the middle of January 2024, Gaimin Gladiators’ midlaner, Quinn “Quinn” Callahan, successfully dethroned him for the first time.

Quinn is the first NA player to get the top 1 spot in European Leaderboards.
Image Source: Screen Capture of Valve's Dota2 Leaderboards.

Back then, the achievement made waves in the Dota 2 community. Quinn became the first North American Dota 2 player to take the top spot in the European Dota 2 leaderboard.

Unfortunately, his achievement did not last long. After 48 hours, Entity’s safelaner retook the spot from the esports player of the year nominee.

The Prodigy’s Journey

Although Satanic was a rising talent in pubs, he only started making a name for himself in the professional Dota 2 scene last month when he joined Yellow Submarine.

The young prodigy who dethroned Watson.
Credits: Facebook. @Diorite

The Eastern European team can be considered the talent factory for their region’s Dota 2 scene. The current two-time TI champions, Team Spirit’s roster, once also played under Yellow Submarine’s banter before becoming a legend themselves.

With Yellow Submarine, Satanic even managed to draw blood from Team Spirit during their encounter at ESL One Birmingham Qualifiers. However, Spirit quickly recovered and knocked their opponents to the lower bracket.

What the Future Holds

Lina from Valve at the New Frontiers update
Credits: Valve

Valve’s affirmative stance against smurfs is starting to yield results. By enforcing a rule that players can only have a single account, the top spots on the Dota 2 leaderboards are now more accessible to players willing to give it a shot. Winning or losing streak will now have a clear effect on the placement on the leaderboards, and Satanic’s latest achievement is proof of it.

Featured Image Source: Facebook.@ Diorite

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