Top Laner Soner "StarScreen" Kaya and Jungler Hakan "Ferret" Mert Çakmak are set to re-unite under FUT Esports to play in the Turkish Championship League (TCL), according to Sheep Esports sources. Starting their careers together in late 2019, they played for the İstanbul Wildcats until 2022 before parting ways last year. The dynamic duo, having secured three championships, continues to stand as some of the region's most accomplished players.

Full FUT Esports 2024 TCL Roster

Top Lane: Soner "StarScreen" Kaya
Jungle: Hakan "Ferret" Mert Çakmak
Mid Lane: Onur Can "Bolulu" Demirol
Bot Lane: Belan "TakeSet" Ahour
Support: Batuhan "kibah" Gazier Kibar

Title Contenders

As two of the Turkish league's most decorated players, the former regional champions are gearing up to compete for FUT Esports with a fresh lineup in 2024. Having initially joined forces in 2019, the duo boasts four years of shared experience, starting their careers in the now-defunct Turkish Academy League. Over the years, they ascended through the ranks, earning recognition and proving themselves as some of the best players to emerge from the region's developmental league.

Paired with another legend of the league, mid laner Onur Can "Bolulu" Demirol, FUT Esports aims to assemble a star-studded lineup with the goal of contending for the league's title. Recent reports also confirmed agreements with Belan "TakeSet" Ahour and Batuhan "kibah" Gazier Kibar, who will make up the team's duo lane in the upcoming competitive season. With five exceptionally talented players, FUT is hoping to rival against the top teams in the league, notably Papara SuperMassive, who are currently hailed as one of the most exciting lineups emerging from this off-season.

Aiming for Success

Since parting ways with the İstanbul Wildcats, StarScreen has struggled to uphold his past performances. Joining FUT at the beginning of the 2023 competitive season, the top laner competed with the team in both the spring and summer splits. While achieving a 2nd place finish in the first half of the year, he stumbled against his former team in the playoffs before delivering subpar performances at the EMEA Masters, exiting the tournament in its group stage.

In the summer split, the team's performance further declined, finishing 4th in the league's group stage and 3rd in the playoffs. Narrowly securing a play-in spot for the EMEA Masters, the team would be eliminated by Italian representatives Dsyre Esports in the knockout stage, failing to advance to the main event. Now re-signing with the team, StarScreen aims for improved performances in 2024 with a promising roster.

Coming in as a shock to Turkish fans, Ferret's 2023 season would begin with the announcement of his departure from the İstanbul Wildcats. Having competed for almost four years under the organization's banner, fans would be surprised to find out that the 21-year-old jungler would be moving to a different region for the first time in his career by joining GamerLegion in the Prime League. Unfortunately, the team would soon show cracks, eventually ending in 8th position in the league.

Thankfully for Ferret, despite winning the spring EMEA Masters, IW would soon find themselves without a jungler following the dismissal of Taha "Elramir" Yurdagüven. Soon after, Ferret would swiftly re-join the organization which had helped him grow in the Turkish region. Together, they would go on to re-establish themselves as uncontested champions of the TCL, winning the league's summer split and heading back to the EMEA Masters. Unfortunately, the team would struggle there, being swept by Karmine Corp in the quarterfinals and exiting the tournament in an anticlimactic fashion.

Re-united under FUT Esports, the two champions are now ready for the 2024 season and hope to re-conquer the league once more. Per recent announcements, the TCL is set to begin on January 18th.