Quinn to Stand In for Team Falcons at ESL One Raleigh

This is not quite the news that Western European Dota 2 squad Team Falcons were hoping for, because Quinn “Quinn” Callahan will now have to stand in for mid laner Stanislav “Malr1ne” Potorak at ESL One Raleigh. The organization announced the temporary roster change earlier today, via a post on their official Twitter account.

Malr1ne will be unable to attend the $1 million LAN tournament due to visa issues, despite him taking the time to help his application along. He was replaced temporarily by Syed “SumaiL” Hassan at DreamLeague Season 25, albeit only from the second group stage onwards. Unfortunately, the United States Embassy did not grant him a visa, and so he must watch on from the sidelines for now.

Official announcement regarding our DOTA 2 team at ESL One Raleigh 2025. 🇺🇸#FalconsAreHere #ESLOne pic.twitter.com/UxSs6vlmqn

— Falcons Esports (@FalconsEsport) April 2, 2025

Quinn is, of course, not a mid laner that anyone would ever refuse as a stand-in — least of all a famous team like Falcons. He just came off a second place finish at FISSURE Universe Episode 4 — and although he and his team Gaimin Gladiators got swept by BetBoom Team in the grand finals of that tournament, getting there in the first place is proof that he’s still in form.

Home Cook-Quinn

With that in mind, I personally think that Falcons will be in good hands once the competition begins on April 7th. And besides, with the tournament itself taking place in Raleigh, North Carolina, I’m sure US Dota fans are going to celebrate Quinn’s presence there.

They’re still very much in the running for first place at Raleigh, and having to take on a stand-in doesn’t change that. Yes, it might make things a little more difficult considering team chemistry and the question of how Quinn’s playstyle might fit with that of the team he’s standing in for. But if nothing else, Quinn is a consummate professional and is likely to adapt as needed.

An Ironic Situation?

This outcome regarding Malr1ne’s visa is both expected and unexpected at the same time. After all, Malr1ne is a Russian citizen — which the United States has always had tense relations with historically speaking. Given the recent and distant past between both countries, it’s not entirely surprising that he’s been denied entry, even with Team Falcons likely providing sufficient evidence that he will only be in the country for ESL One Raleigh.

On the other hand, it’s kind of funny that Russian passports like Malr1ne’s are being denied US visas, considering that US president Donald Trump has been cozying up to Russian president Vladimir Putin since mid-February this year. One would think that Russian citizens would be welcomed more frequently as a result, but of course politics are much too complex for that to just happen.

Also, esports athletes will almost always be given less leeway in terms of visa applications compared to traditional sports athletes, as professional gaming still isn’t quite as culturally accepted or relevant even by today’s standards. It’s entirely possible that the US Embassy just dismissed Malr1ne’s bid for a visa on this very basis. After all, it’s happened even to pro players from countries allied with the United States, such as in the case of Moist Esports’ mostly-Australian Apex Legends squad in 2024.

Whatever the case may be, it’s nonetheless sad to see that some pros are still struggling to enter the US to play at high profile tournaments. It’s unlikely that we’ll see this change over the next few years, unless pro gaming becomes more legitimized in that period of time.