Team Liquid are shaking things up for the upcoming Dota 2 season, welcoming two familiar faces from one of their fiercest rivals. Former Gaimin Gladiators duo Marcus “Ace” Hoelgaard and Erik “tOfu” Engel have officially joined the two-time TI champions, stepping into the offlane and position 5 support roles respectively.

The signing, announced on 9 October, follows a turbulent post-TI 2025 period for the organisation. After parting ways with offlaner Jonáš “SabeRLighT-” Volek and bidding farewell to long-time captain Aydin “iNsania” Sarkohi, who retired from professional play after a decade, Liquid were in urgent need of new recruits.

Two players always on the same wavelength, now flowing as Liquid.

Welcome @AceDota & @tOfuDota2 🌊 pic.twitter.com/GpTSWi44xI

— Team Liquid Dota (@teamliquiddota) October 9, 2025

Their revamped roster now features:

• Micke “miCKe” Vu
• Michał “Nisha” Jankowski
• Marcus “Ace” Hoelgaard
• Samuel “Boxi” Svahn
• Erik “tOfu” Engel

From Rivals to Teammates

Ace and tOfu were key members of the Gaimin Gladiators lineup that clashed repeatedly with Team Liquid across multiple major events from 2022 to 2024. The two teams shared one of Dota 2’s most intense modern rivalries, with Gladiators coming out on top in six major finals, including three in 2023, before Liquid finally claimed their long-awaited TI victory in 2024.

Now, that rivalry has transformed into an alliance. “It’s somewhat intimidating for me because I’ve been with some of my other players for four years now, especially tOfu,” Ace said in Team Liquid’s announcement. “But it’s very interesting and cool to try something new like this.”

tOfu echoed the sentiment, recalling how often the teams crossed paths. “I think I’ve played against Team Liquid more than any other esports team. Because we clashed so many times, it became like having a rivalry with your best friends,” he said. “I’ve always liked them and had a great deal of respect for them.”

The End of an Era for Gaimin Gladiators

Their move to Team Liquid marks the official end of Gaimin Gladiators’ celebrated Dota 2 run. Once a powerhouse of the competitive scene, the team’s downfall came swiftly in 2025. Despite earning a direct invite to TI, the organisation withdrew before the event due to a public dispute with its players.

The fallout has since escalated into a lawsuit, with Gaimin Gladiators reportedly taking legal action against several former members, including Ace and tOfu. The dissolution of their roster effectively closes the book on one of Dota 2’s most dominant eras.

What’s Next for Liquid

Team Liquid are wasting no time putting their new lineup to the test. The squad has already debuted at FISSURE Universe: Episode 7 and will soon compete at BLAST Slam IV, PGL Wallachia Season 6, BLAST Slam V, and DreamLeague Season 27.

The organisation is also searching for a new coach following the departure of Damien “kpii” Chok, who played a key role in Liquid’s TI 2024 triumph. Head coach William “BlitZ” Lee hinted that iNsania could step into a coaching position, though nothing has been confirmed yet.

After a disappointing 9th–13th place finish at TI 2025, the revamped Liquid roster is looking to reclaim its former glory. With the addition of Ace and tOfu, two proven veterans with championship experience, the team is poised for another strong run in the 2025/2026 Dota 2 season.

The post Team Liquid Reunites With Former Rivals Ace and tOfu for the New Dota 2 Season appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

The Dota 2 world has been shaken once again, this time by a massive lawsuit involving one of its most well-known organisations. Gaimin Gladiators have officially filed a $7.5 million CAD lawsuit against their former roster, following a dramatic fallout that led to the team withdrawing from The International 2025.

GG management claim reason for dispute relates to negatively impacted sponsor relationships and failure to hit deliverables. Official statement contained in the report. https://t.co/QlqZ4ZQatY pic.twitter.com/guWetOIpuT

— Richard Lewis (@RLewisReports) October 4, 2025

According to a report by veteran esports journalist Richard Lewis, the lawsuit was filed in the Ontario court system and specifically names Quinn “Quinn” Callahan, Marcus “Ace” Hoelgaard Christensen, Erik “tOfu” Engel, and Alimzhan “watson” Islambekov as defendants. Interestingly, Arman “Malady” Orazbayev, who joined the team in April 2025, was not included in the filing.

The $7.5 Million Claim

Lewis’ report details that the initial claim seeks $7.5 million in damages, although that figure could change as the case progresses. The dispute traces back to a public breakdown between Gaimin Gladiators and their players in the lead-up to The International 2025, which resulted in the team withdrawing from the tournament entirely.

Image via Richard Lewis Report | https://richardlewis.substack.com/p/gaimin-gladiators-officially-file

The organisation stated that the players had threatened to underperform, cancelled their bootcamp less than a week before TI, and later expressed intent to compete independently under a different banner. Gaimin Gladiators’ management claimed that once the players obtained legal representation, negotiations failed and they could not field a team that had “threatened legal action” against them.

“At no point did the players accept any measures in order to attend The International,” the organisation told Richard Lewis. “They cancelled a bootcamp at significant cost to us; threatened on August 4th that they may not perform; and on August 7th communicated their wish to exit their agreement and compete independently.”

The Root of the Dispute

However, the lawsuit appears to go beyond tournament participation. Richard Lewis reported that Gaimin Gladiators are also alleging multiple contractual breaches, including failure to meet sponsor deliverables and inappropriate public behaviour.

The most notable incident dates back to October 2024, when Quinn Callahan made a controversial comment on stream directed at a Russian player:

“I guess you’re just Russian. It’s not your fault you’re born in a trash country.”

Following backlash, Gaimin Gladiators issued a statement reaffirming their zero-tolerance policy toward discrimination, while Quinn later apologised publicly. But according to Lewis’ sources, this remark had serious consequences behind the scenes, allegedly costing GG a multi-million dollar sponsorship deal with Russian bookmaker Winline, estimated to be worth around $3 million.

“Comments from Quinn resulted in the loss of a sponsorship in the mid-seven figures,” Gaimin Gladiators said in their statement to Richard Lewis. “There are over five separate instances of inappropriate communications and behaviour toward specific demographics. The dispute relates to various clauses, including 18 months of unfulfilled social and sponsorship deliverables.”

Lewis’ report also mentions that players collectively missed “dozens” of sponsor-related social media deliverables, further straining GG’s business relationships.

Fallout and Next Steps

This legal case marks one of the most significant disputes in Dota 2 history, involving both reputational damage and financial loss. It’s a rare instance of an esports organisation taking its players to court over alleged breaches of conduct and contract.

Gaimin Gladiators were one of the top contenders heading into The International 2025, having built a reputation as one of the most dominant teams in recent years. But instead of competing on stage, they’re now locked in what could be a lengthy and highly public legal battle.

As of publication, the players named in the lawsuit have declined to comment. Richard Lewis noted that his publication is in the process of obtaining the full legal filing from the Ontario courts to verify the details in full.

The post Gaimin Gladiators Sue Dota 2 Players for $7.5 Million After The International Fallout appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Fitbit, one of the leading global smart wearables brand, has introduced the Fitbit Ace, an activity tracker that makes fitness fun for kids while inspiring the entire family to build healthy habits together to help fight decreasing levels of activity in children.

Designed for kids ages 8 and older, Ace automatically tracks steps, active minutes and sleep, has up to 5 days of battery life, features an adjustable, showerproof wristband in two bright colors, and provides encouragement to be active. Plus, with the new Fitbit family account, parents can control who their kids connect with in the Fitbit app so they can safeguard their kids’ privacy and stay on top of their activity. Ace is available globally this month (April 2018).

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), childhood obesity rates are on the rise, with two out of three kids inactive every day.

Based on a new Fitbit study, most parents agree and believe their children are less active than when they were children.

They are concerned about their child’s weight, the food they eat, and their activity levels, as well as the rising trend of childhood obesity. The majority of parents want their children to be healthier (84%) and want their families to be more active (87%).

Screen time is cited as the biggest challenge in getting their kids to be active, and parents are looking for ways to encourage a more healthy, active lifestyle, including being more active as a family, cooking together, or encouraging their children to have a better understanding of their own activity levels. In fact, 75% of parents said they are interested in the use of fitness trackers to help them keep their kids active, and Fitbit was selected over competitors more than twice as often due to price and ease of use.

To address this challenge, Fitbit has designed Ace to encourage kids 8 and older to be more active and build healthy habits with their families by tracking their activity and providing kids with the motivation to move by automatically tracking steps, active minutes and sleep stats, and set customizable daily step and active minute goals. The World Health Organization recommends children ages 7-17 get 60 minutes of daily physical activity, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests 9 to 12 hours of sleep a night.

By reminding them to move the Ace reduces sedentary time by setting up personalized reminders that nudge them to get at least 250 steps each hour with a small buzz when they’ve been sitting on the couch or in front of a screen for too long.

Encouraging kids to achieve their goals by rewarding them with celebratory messages and fun, collectible badges, which can be seen in the Fitbit app on their (or your) phone.

Kids can compete against family, or friends (coming soon), in daily and weekend challenges, or in a Family Faceoff – a new 5-day step challenge that allows members in a family account to compete against each other and stay motivated (coming soon).

“The challenge of inactivity with our children is not going away and is only estimated to get worse as they get older, dropping almost 40 minutes per year from ages 9 to 15,” said Chris Watts, executive director of the National Fitness Foundation.“It is essential to provide parents with tools to help their kids be more active. Fitbit’s solution offers more than just a way to track activity – it helps instill healthy habits from an early age, making it fun and rewarding to move more and empowers parents to make health and fitness a family affair.”

Protecting kids’ privacy is top of mind for parents who let their kids use technology. That’s why our new Fitbit family account is designed to be compliant with Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and other applicable privacy laws, allowing parents to manage who their children connect with and what information they see in the Fitbit app.

This includes a Parent view setting which lets you navigate between your view and your kid’s view to check their activity, progress, and approve their friend requests from family members and friends (coming soon) at any time in the Fitbit app. Ace automatically syncs with most Android and iOS devices; Windows devices coming soon.

The kid view setting limits what data your child sees in the Fitbit app, such as stats, friend requests, badges, clock faces, and more. For kids with smartphones, ensure they never miss your call with notifications directly on their wrist.

“As childhood obesity rates continue to rise, it’s more important than ever to empower the entire family to embrace a healthy and more active lifestyle,” said James Park, CEO and Co-founder of Fitbit. “It can be hard to start and stick to good habits, and we know from our community that network effects are key to getting and keeping people motivated. By bringing that experience to families, it can make healthier habits feel more achievable by making it fun and engaging. We are excited by the opportunity to enable parents to help set their kids on a path to building lifelong, healthy habits all while having fun together.”

Fitbit Ace is now available  on Fitbit.com for $149.95, including major New Zealand retailers; Noel Leeming, Harvey Norman and JB Hi-Fi.

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