Dota 2: After splitting from LGD, PSG Esports partner up with Quest ahead of The International 2023
With this partnership, Quest Esports' Dota 2 team will now be competing at TI under the banner of PSG.Quest.
Qatar-based Dota 2 team Quest Esports have partnered with PSG Esports, the esports wing of the French football club Paris Saint-Germain. This sees the squad rebranded as PSG.Quest ahead of their participation in The International (TI) 2023, this year's Dota 2 world championship tournament.
The tie-up marks PSG Esports' first partnership with a Middle-Eastern European team as well as its quick return to the Dota 2 scene after the organisation ended its five-year partnership with China-based LGD Gaming in early September. Quest has been one of the biggest success stories in Dota 2 this year, quickly rising through the ranks of the scene's lower divisions to qualifying for its world championship tournament.
From the Seine to the dunes of Qatar, a new #Dota2 alliance emerges. Quest meets Paris Saint-Germain in a tale of ambition and unity. The game evolves, and champions rise. PSG Quest will take on #TI12.#PSGQuest pic.twitter.com/DFXWaFMwBX
— PSG Quest (@PSGQuest) October 10, 2023
The team started out as Ooredoo Thunders with a roster consisting of Middle-Eastern and Eastern European players, namely Aybek "TA2000" Tokayev, Tony "No!ob" Assaf, Faruk "Wuiter" Terci, Omar "OmaR" Moughrabi, and Oleh "kaori" Medvedok.
They earned a place in the 2023 Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season through the open qualifiers to start in Division II, finishing the Winter Tour in first place to quickly get promoted to Division I. After a solid fifth place finish in the Division I Spring Tour regional league for Western Europe, Ooredoo Thunders then became known as Quest Esports.
Turning heads with Ammar
Quest then started turning heads in May when they acquired Ammar "ATF" Al-Assaf on loan from Nigma Galaxy to replace Wuiter, who left in April.
ATF helped Quest finish the Summer Tour regional league in third place and qualify for the Bali Major, where they had a chance to earn a direct invite to TI 2023 if they managed a second place finish.
However, Quest finished the Bali Major in fourth place and fell short of a direct invite, though by then they were already being considered the heavy favourites to win the Western European qualifier.
Despite the team's success, ATF left Quest after due to a contract dispute in July. The team then signed former Entity offlaner Tobias "Tobi" Buchner to complete their roster for TI 2023's regional qualifiers.
Quest, the giant killers at the regional qualifiers
In the Western European regional qualifier, Quest enjoyed a strong start with a 2-0 sweep over KZ Team in the first round of the upper bracket. However, they were knocked down to the lower bracket in the next round after a 1-2 upset loss to Luna Galaxy.
In the lower bracket, Quest went on a spree of breaking records en route to punching their ticket to TI 2023.
First, Quest knocked out OG in the lower bracket quarterfinals to cause the two-time TI champions to miss out on TI for the first time in the organisation's history. They also ended Clement "Puppey" Ivanov's streak of attending every iteration of TI by eliminating Team Secret in the lower bracket semifinals.
Quest then claimed their spot in TI 2023 by avenging their previous loss to Luna Galaxy with a 2-0 sweep in the lower bracket finals.
Paris Saint-Germain Brand Director Fabien Allègre said in a statement that PSG.Quest will be helping Paris Saint-Germain pursue "its ambition to be part of the global esports elite and to continue to thrill non-traditional football audiences" at TI 2023 and beyond.
"We are delighted to announce an exciting new adventure for Paris Saint-Germain in the world of Esport. Today, we proudly unveil our Dota 2 team, "PSG Quest", which will proudly represent the Club's colors in the biggest video game competitions," added Allègre.
"This partnership is an important milestone for Quest Esports. Our journey, from our founding in 2022 to partnering with a global brand like Paris Saint-Germain, reflects our commitment and Qatar's vision for esports. Together, as PSG Quest, we not only compete at the highest level, we also foster a new era of esports, bridging cultures and inspiring millions of people around the world," said Quest Esports CEO Elie Gemayel.
Quest is now notably the third team competing in TI 2023 to score a huge partnership ahead of the competition. Last week, Chinese teams Azure Ray and LGD Gaming announced partnerships with Honkai: Star Rail, the smash-hit space fantasy RPG developer by gacha gaming giant HoYoverse.
TI 2023 will be hosted from 12 to 29 October in Seattle, the United States and will see 20 of the best Dota 2 teams in the world fighting to claim the coveted Aegis of Champions and the lion's share of a growing prize pool.
For everything you need to know about TI 2023, check here.
PSG.Quest roster for The International 2023:
Aybek "TA2000" Tokayev
Tony "No!ob" Assaf
Tobias "Tobi" Buchner
Omar "OmaR" Moughrabi
Oleh "kaori" Medvedok
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