G2 Esports have decided to part ways with their VALORANT roster after missing out on the Riot partnership, due to the Carlos situation.
The G2 Esports story around Riot's partnerships is a tragic one. A storied esports organization, with roots dating back to beta, missed partnership after the CEO derailed their chances. In light of reports that C9 took their spot in the Americas league, G2 have decided to release their roster into free agency.
Unrestricted free agency
Žygimantas “nukkye” Chmieliauskas, Oscar “mixwell” Cañellas, Aaro “hoody” Peltokangas, Johan “Meddo” Renbjörk, and Auni “AvovA” Chahade are now unrestricted free agents. Head coach Daniil "PipsoN" Mescheryakov was also released into free agency.
The players and coaches became restricted free agents a month prior, but their status changed with the organization exiting the scene. With powerhouse players nukkye and mixwell given UFA status, they'll be a hot commodity on the free agent market. Mixwell has already signed with Heretics, made official shortly after the G2 announcement. The status of his teammates is unknown.
G2's storied history in VALORANT
Returning the early beta days of VALORANT, G2 were a European juggernaut. The first organization to make a splash with names like World Champion Ardis "ardiis" Svarenieks, Patryk "PaTiTek" Fabrowski, and longstanding star mixwell. Moreover, G2 didn't lose a single tournament throughout 2020.
The Carlos-Tate Incident
For months, there were murmurs that G2 was one of the obvious candidates for partnership. The organization has had a great relationship with Riot through their excellent League of Legends teams throughout the years. They hit all the boxes in terms of commitment to the game, brand value, and financial stability.
Unfortunately, mere days before the announcement, Carlos "Ocelot" Rodriguez was caught partying with the most infamous internet misogynist, Andrew Tate. The video surfacing derailed any potential deals. Before the incident, G2 was even being considered for an Americas slot
Nonetheless, the backlash to that two second clip of Tate partying amongst G2 staff cost the organization a slot. Riot held an emergency meeting during VCT Champions in Istanbul and reversed their decision. Carlos eventually resigned as CEO due to the pressure from the community. The incident not only derailed the franchise opportunity but stopped a deal in place to sign the entirety of the XSET roster.
It's been a long, arduous road for G2 to miss out on a slot in the eleventh hour. The subsequent release of the roster points to an organization leaving the game. It appears they will not be looking to compete in the tier-two EMEA Challenger leagues.
It's a shame with how promising their first three years had gone, with high points (3rd place at Masters Berlin 2021, 5th-6th at Masters Reykjavik 2022) and some lower points (missing out on Champs in both 2021 & 2022). G2's future in VALORANT is in Jeopardy now and we'll have to wait and see if the organization ever decides to return.
Featured image courtesy of Colin Wolff and Riot Games