As the official National Team Partner of the Esports Nations Cup 2026, UESF announces the first national team rosters for Ukraine. ENC kicks off in November in Riyadh — but first, every national team must go through regional online qualifiers. Today we present the first two rosters that will compete for a spot in Saudi Arabia: Rainbow Six Siege and Rocket League.
Rainbow Six Siege
Coach GHOOD BHOY spent several tough weeks of analysis before announcing the roster. “After long and difficult analytical evenings, breaking down the mathematical side of player stats, gathering diverse feedback, and reviewing official matches — I finally arrived at a positive result in determining the main roster,” he says.
The core of the national team is the UAIM stack, which exists as the only serious Ukrainian team in R6: Siege. Most of the players have known each other for a long time, played together in mixed teams, and understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses. This is especially important in R6: from roster formation to qualifiers, Europe gets the least amount of time among all ENC disciplines.
“I’m proud of our unity and our ability to work together toward one goal,” says the coach.
Vadym “SiRiLoiD” Kulkov
Support player for the team. Reserved, calm, and level-headed — the one who keeps a cool head in the most tense moments. Playing professionally since 2021 — the most experienced member of the roster. Winner of several notable tournaments. In his free time — owns a gaming peripherals and gadgets shop.
Oleksandr “Shvdxw” Pashchenko
Entry fragger, Fans of Attics. The team’s hype man — keeps the energy up during intense moments, enjoys teamplay and jokes in the heat of a match. Can step into the captain role if needed. Plays alongside Sm1ss in the European mix Fans of Attics — but representing the national team with longtime friends is a joy for both of them. Winner of ELC Winter Cup #2 and Lidoma Tournament: August 2025 #2.
Dmytro “Sm1ss” Kleishmidt
Team captain — the brains and round control. Receives call-outs from the whole team, processes them, and builds real-time decisions following blueprints that he mostly creates himself. Winner of Seasonal Series 2025 – Autumn: Europe MENA – Contenders League and Euro League & Cup – Winter Cup 2025. May soon make his mark with an academy team or a serious organization — but he’ll share that himself when the time comes.
Volodymyr “MareckX” Marinchyk
Flex player. His journey in R6 began under the nickname jojopaladini — with a win at the Tournament of Ukraine’s R6 Community 2024. That’s where he met SiRiLoiD and Shvdxw; together they tried their hand at Malta Cyber Series: VIII, and afterward MareckX joined the UAIM stack at Euro League & Cup – Summer Cup: July 2025.
Stanislav “NilaR” Larin
Flex player, No Recoil Army. Playing since 2022 — the youngest on the roster. The team’s loud voice, learns quickly, and has a strong talent for adapting to whatever a round demands. Also has a chance to step into a new career stage soon.
Substitutes: Ostap “wenyt” Kmetiuk, Oleksii “lex4” Nepomniashchyi
lex4 — a former UAIM stack player, knows the guys better than anyone. There were no questions about his selection as a substitute — the team welcomed him as one of their own.
wenyt — currently working as a commentator and analyst for the R6: Siege unit at OBLOGA-CAST. Gets along well with the team, attends all theory sessions, and tries himself out in scrims. For him, this experience is an important opportunity to sharpen his skills beyond just climbing rank.
Coach: Oleksandr “GHOOD BHOY” Samoilenko
Actively developing the R6 scene in Ukraine — his own initiatives, tournaments, community work. Conducted the roster selection systematically: stat analysis, reviewing official matches, gathering feedback. “I got lucky to choose a team that knows each other so well,” he says. They even ran through several failure scenarios in case things don’t go well in qualifiers — to know how to move forward regardless of the outcome.
Rocket League
Rocket League in Ukraine is a discipline that’s only just starting to gain popularity. All three main players on the national team know this — and openly say they want to change it. Coach Skeenny_ understands this mission better than anyone: he built the Ukrainian Rocket League community from the ground up, organizing local tournaments back when the game barely had anyone’s attention in Ukraine.
Andrii “Deicidii” Bidalov
20 years old. Top finishes at Ukrainian amateur tournaments — SLPK, eLegion Pro Community Cup, KT Esports. Competed in European qualifiers. “Rocket League isn’t popular in Ukraine. I hope our team’s performance at ENC will change that.”
Danylo “daniel iopta” Baklanskyi
Has been training actively for the past two years, his best result — top-385 in Europe at European qualifiers. Winner of Ukrainian amateur tournaments. “I’m expecting a bit of nerves, some tactical experiments, and exciting matches against pro players I’ve only ever seen on video.”
Heorhii “K0bzar_” Sydorov
Team captain. Playing since early 2022, and in that time has become one of the strongest young players on the Ukrainian scene, with wins at numerous tournaments and matches against pro players in regular games. Has two goals at ENC: reaching the main stage and drawing attention to Rocket League in Ukraine.
Andrii “Mencher_” Korzhynovskyi — substitute
17 years old. Competitor in amateur tournaments and European qualifiers. Shares the team’s goal — popularizing Rocket League among Ukrainian gamers. “I want to play at a high level against well-known professional players” — and if called upon to step in, he’ll be ready.
Coach: Andrii “Skeenny_” Piatnytskyi
One of the first people to build the Rocket League community in Ukraine — organizing local tournaments, popularizing the game long before it became a topic for the national team. That’s why ENC isn’t just a tournament for him — it’s the culmination of several years of work. “I witnessed the birth of the Ukrainian Rocket League community. And now here we are — the Ukrainian national team at ENC 2026.”
Qualifiers
To make it to Riyadh, national teams first need to get through regional selection.
Regional online qualifiers for Rainbow Six Siege will take place May 29-31, 2026.
Regional online qualifiers for Rocket League — July 17-19, 2026.
Follow updates at uesf.org.ua and the national team’s official pages.
About the Ukrainian Esports Federation (UESF)
The Ukrainian Esports Federation (UESF) is the official national organization that develops and regulates esports in Ukraine. Under the leadership of President Maksym Krippa, the federation organizes national championships, represents Ukraine on the international stage, and builds an ecosystem where every player — from beginner to professional — has the opportunity to grow. UESF unites players, clubs, the community, and partners around a shared idea: esports is part of modern Ukrainian culture.
