The top 8 offlaners at ESL One Birmingham 2026

We’re now onto our third set of top player lists for ESL One Birmingham 2026, and this time Owen and I will be taking a look at the offlaners at the event.

Though offlaners are really going through it right now due to the popular carries being quite strong at laning these days, these players are nonetheless important to their teams’ win conditions.

#1 — Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf

All hail the best player in the world. Despite Team Falcons’ subpar form as of late, ATF still stands alone as the strongest offlaner at ESL One Birmingham — thanks to his combination of sheer skill, borderline insane fearlessness, and extreme hero specialization. There are only so many bans you can spend on Falcons’ signature heroes, and a few of them had better be for ATF’s picks like Mars, Timbersaw, and Razor.

#2 — Neta “33” Shapira

If you looked up the word “genius” in the dictionary, you’ll find a picture of 33 there. Though his favorite hero Doom might not be in the best place right now in the metagame, he still has other signature picks to turn to like Timbersaw and Beastmaster. 33 is someone you absolutely want on your team at this position, and Tundra Esports would be a much worse team without him.

#3 — Magomed “Collapse” Khalilov

Team Spirit may not be in absolute top form right now, but Collapse certainly is. He’s a two-time International champion for a reason, and you can always rely on him to make big, game-changing plays with his favorite initiator heroes. He rounds out the Big Three offlaners of mordern Dota, and is probably the biggest walking highlight reel of the three.

#4 — Chung “Ws” Wei Shen

Ws is a good laner and is solid in terms of playmaking, though he is still somewhat raw as a prospect. He’s still only 20 years old, mind you, so there’s plenty of room for him to grow from his position. Aurora Gaming are blessed to have him on their roster, and he played a huge part in their miracle run at DreamLeague Season 28.

#5 — Evgeniy “Noticed” Ignatenko

After having missed two top level events due to visa issues, Noticed is finally back in Team Yandex’s roster after hitting his stride as a player a few months ago. He is just as important to this lineup as anyone else on the team, but he could be rusty due to his lack of play lately. Also, his own team won a tournament without him, which does force us to dock some points.

#6 — Miroslav “BOOM” Bičan

BOOM’s finest hour came in the form of MOUZ’ run at PGL Wallachia Season 6, where he was perhaps the second biggest reason why they won it all there last year. He and the rest of his team have fallen off precipitously since then, but individually speaking, he remains very reliable. His straightforward playstyle might not wow anyone looking for flashy plays, but he’s rock solid from his position and is generally never the weak point in MOUZ’ roster.

#7 — Lin “Xxs” Jing

Xxs is one of the greatest offlaners to ever come out of China, but those days are somewhat behind him at this point in his career. The absolute carry job he nearly pulled off at The International 2025 (TI14) was something to behold, but since then, he’s been good but nothing truly special. Still, he’s vital to Xtreme Gaming’s success, and they won’t get anywhere in Birmingham without his help.

#8 — Nikko “Nikko” Bilocura

Owen and I have touted Nikko as one of the most mechanically gifted offlaners of the modern era for some time now. In fact, Owen got put in a pub game with him before, and by his assessment, Nikko is a “really, really good player” with “insane mechanics”. But unfortunately, his tendency to choke away leads and games that he and OG should be winning holds him back significantly. But when he keeps these tendencies in check, he can really put on a show.