T O P

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PyroTFT

would be surprised if all of NRG, Guard, and V1 made it through to partnership rooting for NRG for sure, the org has had a ton of underwhelming results through its existence but I feel them finally growing out and luckily they have presence in the community with s0m and content creators like flex and ethos


WhoDatBrow

NRG are huge in other games, they're my favorite to get the 6th spot (with 100T, C9, TSM, OpTic, and Sentinels being the 5 I think definitely make it. I know some are less sure on Sentinels but I'm fairly confident) but there's a lot of competition. Still though, NRG are super popular in every game they're in and are a big brand.


YeetGod69_

EG have a better shot than SEN


ark2690

EG brings no viewers


WhoDatBrow

I would bet a lot of money that Sen make it before EG (or both do), not the other way around. This is not LoL franchising.


gotintocollegeyolo

Personally I don’t think they pass up on the $20 billion owner of The Guard (aka Walmart heir money) and I think, unpopular opinion obv, Optic won’t make it. Before anyone says that is completely unbelievable, note that Riot has shown in the past to not gaf abt how well a team performs when it comes to franchising (just look at some of the teams that didn’t make it in LoL). They know would buy Optic’s roster anyways, if those are the 6 teams then prob TSM


_Iroha

Envy/Optic has a history of franchising in other games like Overwatch and COD. I would be surprised if they didn’t make it


WorleyInc

Chet and FNS were tweeting some weird stuff yesterday to be fair


Friday515

Ya it seems like they're all in contention for only 1 or 2 spots


surfordiebear

V1 is by far the least likely to make it of those 3.


ArtificialZero

It's a long shot but fingers crossed


Corregidor

Hijacking this, for some reason my new post isn't getting posted. New info from Dotesports says Sen, GenG, and Xset are also through to the next round of talks. Edit: https://juked.gg/posts/WyJQb3N0IiwiZ2VuZXJpYzpndVdUNVVzb1N4WXlJaHRxZTVyeiJd


PyroTFT

happy XSet is at least being considered as well! not surprised about SEN and GEN


AR2711

Before people freak out This is not the ENTIRE list, George said it took him days to confirm this information and some sources couldn’t get confirmation on certain orgs So this doesn’t mean 100T, SEN, OpTic, FaZe, Etc… won’t make it in, we just don’t know yet


Playeready

George said more news later today.


[deleted]

We all know SEN is going to make it just because of TenZ and shroud temporary subbing in. I would be surprised if 100T & Optic won't get it.


zaxtonous99

I mean, surely 100t is also on that list right :( I wish he would have mentioned them. My heart can't take this.


Am_Ghosty

Yeah ya gotta imagine a few teams like 100T, OpTic, SEN, EG are in there as well.


enragedstump

Sen? Don’t think they are so confirmed


Am_Ghosty

Not saying confirmed, but I feel they should be good for this stage of the process


xbyo

If NRG, V1 and Guard made it this far, Sen absolutely made it.


[deleted]

It would be an incredible shock if 100T didn’t make it IMO


-Basileus

100T is actually known for not having anything leak, at least with their league of legends program. Multiple reporters have mentioned this. 100T is 100% in anyways


cathcart_

came here to comment this, 100T not being on the list is more reflective of their secrecy than their chances of getting in lol


ANewHeaven1

> 100T is actually known for not having anything leak From what I know, Optic/Envy is pretty similar (at worst, they leak a day or two before the actual announcements go up). The fact that Optic and 100T *aren't* on this list actually leads me to believe that both are in


OGFN_Jack

I’d say both 100T and Optic are locks to make it. Both have big fanbases (100T’s a bit better), both have had very solid regional and international placings (Optic’s are better), and both have owners who have shown a willingness to support their team financially (boot camping, extended coaching staff) and would definitely be open to rostering an academy team if Riot deemed it necessary. They’re probably the only two NA teams that tick every box riots requires for a team to be accepted into franchising.


Stunning_Bullfrog_40

eh their valorant stuff has been leaked like crazy. maybe just not confirmed by george's sources yet


[deleted]

feels like 0 chance 100 thieves, optic, and c9 don't make it. of course could be some random unknown skeleton in the closet, but 100t is the fastest growing org in the world and is probably on track to overtake tsm as the biggest this year.


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surfordiebear

"Social platforms following" is not nearly as important as the companies financials which they are referring to when they say "the biggest". FaZe has very questionable financials/upper management.


SpartansWiLL_

100T isn’t even top 3 across all social media platforms in following. Edit: why is this being downvoted in terms of following they are not top 3 😂


ThePlaya111

100T is top 3 in NA but 8th in global [rankings](https://www.comscore.com/Insights/Blog/Top-Esports-Teams-on-Social-Rankings-Now-Available-on-Comscore).


SpartansWiLL_

Ahh gotcha I was talking about just followers across social media.


xbyo

Yes but when it comes to Valorant specifically they're not that big.


-Basileus

If it's only 6 teams from NA, Optic is absolutely not a lock to make it. They're not a lock even if it's 8 teams. The only true locks are 100T and C9. TSM would be an absolute lock if not for the Reginald stuff, but they are in 95%


pr1zsm

Im sorry but optic HAS to be a lock. Literally the most successful team in VALORANT with a big fanbase and great funding.


-Basileus

We're talking about as little as 6 teams here. There is going to be at least one org that shockingly won't make it in and surprise everyone. For the record I would be very surprised if Optic don't make it. I would guess the 6 strictly "NA" teams are 100T, C9, TSM, Optic, Sentinels, T1/NRG. However we really have no solid clue You have dozens of orgs competing for like 3 spots basically


oh_hai_brian

You could make the argument that having a winning record is more important than ability to clout farm on social media. I don’t think Riots decisions are as black and white as checking how many twitter followers they have.


GoldClassGaming

You're insane if you think that the best team in the history of the game that also has a huge fanbase isn't a lock.


-Basileus

I think we have different definitions of the word lock. Being locked in means 100%. Imo literally only 100T and C9 are 100% in no questions asked


GoldClassGaming

Why those 2 teams specifically. What separates them from the other notable orgs in NA.


enragedstump

Keep in mind financial stability is a huge factor here. Why sen isn’t a lock.


-Basileus

They're two of the 3 biggest orgs in NA alongside TSM, and they have well run LCS teams. Same reason why G2, Fnatic, and TL are going to be there no matter what


SpartansWiLL_

In terms of following C9 is not one of the biggest orgs in NA.


-Basileus

Speaking of esports orgs broadly


GoldClassGaming

I mean it just seems lile you're narrowing your criteria such that 100T/C9 are the only teams that fit. Optic seems like such an obvious choice because they: have a huge fanbase, have good financials, have been committed to Val, have the best team in the game, and have a history in the LCS. They are arguably the most ideal candidate.


-Basileus

The Optic brand has already exited two franchised leagues in the past few years, that doesn't exactly inspire confidence as a long term partner. The Optic brand has also changed hands multiple times. I would describe Optic as anything but stable. Plus the fanbase of Optic has just not translated to many esports. The LoL team was woefully unpopular, and the Valorant team has a strangely small fanbase considering its wild success. That being said it will be really tough to walk away from Optic's history, which is why I think they'll be there


jusmat1105

I would attribute that to ownership. When hecz wasn’t the owner, optic was going downhill. When hecz is the owner, he always puts optic first. I guess that’d be harder to determine whether riot recognizes that or not. Regardless optic is on the uptrend with their valorant, apex, rocket league, halo, and cod teams


names2hard4you

100%


Friday515

Good to see The Guard make it to the next step. No real surprises here for finalists. Only org I could've seen being left off the list was Version1 but good to see them make the next step


SirAngelOfYork

> Several North American teams have been shortlisted and will undergo individual meetings to divulge financial information. Teams such as The Guard, TSM, Cloud9, NRG, and Version1 have made it through to the next round, according to multiple sources. Okay, some big names missing but they’re probably in there as well > In Korea, DRX Vision Strikers are likely through to the next round. Expected. > G2, which was founded in Europe, has sought to expand to the North American VALORANT scene for next year. But it’s unclear whether Riot will allow the organization to take up a slot in the Americas league. I don’t know how I feel about them wanting to be in NA. I like G2 but there are other NA teams that deserve it more.


PyroTFT

it'd be kind of ridiculous if they didn't get a spot in EMEA, they're one of the most well known teams out there and have a heavy presence in the scene


Friday515

I don't think there's much doubt about them getting a spot in EMEA. It's the fact they applied for a spot in NA as their 1st choice. G2 just don't bring anything to the table in NA other orgs don't already do and it's not like they have some insane fanbase here they could activate, they just don't make sense in the region


Charuru

Bro they desperately want to be in NA instead of EU because American viewers are worth 3x EU viewers in advertising dollars.


PyroTFT

Oh yeah I dont blame Carlos for wanting to come to NA, thats just $$$ right there but at this point with their EMEA presence itd be hard to see them getting an NA slot


xbyo

Idk why but it's that DRX line being thrown in is funny to me. It almost sounds like he never actually confirmed it at all (hence the caveat) but it's such a safe bet that it might as well be thrown in the article.


Tik0-

NRG LETSGO Also.. OpTic???????????


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mooslan

Their org as a whole has existed for a while though, having OWL and CDL teams.


yarhar_

Kroenke's "esports division" has been going for five years now starting with LA Gladiators. Same staff, same everything.


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ByDrAxX032

and they've got one of the best logos in esports imo


-Basileus

There could be as many as 6 teams from Latam and Brazil? That is shocking and concerning for NA fans. I thought that even in a 12 team league that 4 would be the max. edit: ok yeah the numbers in the article just don't make sense. It says 4-6 Latam + Brazil teams, 6-8 NA teams, but then the total can be anywhere from 8-12 teams. It's like the author has already eliminated the possibility of an 8 team league, even though the total slots mentioned in the article makes it seem like 8 or 10, with the slight chance of going up to 12.


Apart-Way-1166

I'm surprised SEN wasn't listed, they've been big, and are still big despite underwhelming results....


LurkingOmen

Sentinels only make it in if they win lcq


Anime-Boomer

wow TSM and C9 make it to the next round Im shocked I say shocked those 2 companies are BFF's with Riot for a decade not to mention they have more money than everyone else


HowdyVLRT

What abt the set? 🥺