ILTW: “If I were picked up by some mid-tier team, I think it would actually start playing better.”
Former pro player Igor “ILTW” Filatov spoke about his career in an interview with Cybersport.ru, reflected on signing up for The International 2026 qualifiers for the sake of content, and shared his vision for his future outside of Dota 2.
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On a possible continuation of his career
I think people are just misinterpreting this a bit. Of course, I could. If some mid-tier team picked me up, I think they’d even start playing better. But when it comes to top teams like PARIVISION or BetBoom Team, obviously, I wouldn’t be able to carry them right now. And that’s obvious.
Because to make it onto a team like that, you either have to have a very high rank—literally crushing opponents with a 0-0 record, going 20-0 in every game—or possess some kind of unique playstyle. In other words, you have to bring something new to the game, and that’s not so easy.
Of the players who’ve brought something new to the table lately, I guess there’s only Topson or something. Oh, well, 33—that’s all I can think of right now. The rest just play the default, standard Dota and beat others purely through in-game plays.
On signing up for qualifiers just for content
I don’t want to do this just for content. To me, that’s not content. When you know in advance that you’re going to lose, it’s not interesting at all. But if you actually have a team that can win, and you’re really going to win—then yes, it’s worth a try.
Viewers always forget one thing: losing in Dota 2 isn’t fun. It’s just not fun to lose in this game.
On the Future Beyond Dota 2
I’d like to make enough money—at least 100 million rubles by the time I’m 35. And maybe open a restaurant. I love burgers and lemonade—maybe something like that. You definitely have to put your heart into it, because people can sense everything
On online Dota 2
Dota 2 is a treasure trove of emotions. I think this phenomenon will live on forever—like soccer, like chess. It’s genuinely interesting—what are you going to do about it?
[Is there a sense that, if it doesn’t die out, it’ll just fizzle out?] Yes. But as part of the entertainment industry, it’s not going anywhere: it’ll always be fun to watch a streamer play—especially when they’re playing badly—and to write them some nasty comments. It’s a blast.
On my time with Virtus.pro, Nigma Galaxy, and OG
As a player, I grew up at OG and VP alongside Lech “Solo,” “Vovchik” No[o]ne, Resolut1on, and Zayac—they taught me a lot there. I had a really great experience with those guys. All the other teams were just a phase. You know, it was fun at Nigma sometimes, but overall, I think the move to Nigma was a huge setback for me. Because the guys weren’t really trying to win anymore. But I chose that myself: Misha invited me to join OG alongside ATF instead of Yuragi back then, but I turned it down.
Earlier, esports player Anton “antoha” Marchenko spoke about participating in the European qualifiers for The International 2026: “I remembered how much fun it is to play competitive games—there’s this thing inside me, this dumb, animalistic urge that makes competing fun.”
Photo by Igor “ILTW” Filatov.
