TSM shuts down report that DOTA 2 team pickup was FTX idea

TSM has denied that its former partner and naming rights sponsor FTX wanted the esports organization to pick up a DOTA 2 roster, according to The Washington Post.

TSM parted ways with the debunked cryptocurrency exchange on November 16 days after the company filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in the United States. In a report about the inner workings of the deal, The Washington Post claimed TSM entered into DOTA 2 esports “to please” FTX.

TSM announced the signing of the free-agent DOTA 2 roster Team Undying on January 25, about six months after entering into the FTX partnership. TSM denied that the now-former partner had anything to do with signing the MOBA esports team.

“This is completely untrue,” TSM spokesperson Gillian Sheldon told The Washington Post when asked about the esports organization’s entrance into DOTA 2.

The report also says that former TSM employees said that the esports org has previously invested in esports and games that “are important to sponsors.”

FTX wanted TSM to jump into DOTA 2, according to report

TSM has not traditionally been interested in DOTA 2. The organization began as a League of Legends team back in the early 2010s and did not have a team in the Valve title until picking up Team Undying.

With TSM, the DOTA 2 squad made three top-tier competitions in ESL One Malaysia, Riyadh Masters, and The International 2022. The team did not win any of the tournaments, however, and only managed a top-20 finish at TI.

The team parted ways with Kim ‘DuBu’ Doo-young on November 2 but still has four players under contract at the time of writing. Multiple esports organizations are parting ways with their DOTA 2 rosters post-TI in anticipation of the 2023 season.

TSM as a company has been through three rounds of layoffs in 2022 and said in their statement about the crypto exchange that the esports org is going to be profitable this year.