MAD Lions drop Valorant team after NA Challengers relegation
MAD LionsMAD Lions have released their entire Valorant roster after the team was relegated from the NA Challengers League.
MAD Lions and Disguised were the two teams eliminated from the North American Challengers League at the start of this week. While Jeremy ‘Disguised Toast’ Wang has not yet announced his plans for the team, MAD Lions have decided to pull the plug on the squad.
In a Twitter post, the organization thanked the players “for the efforts and wished them the best in their futures.” Head coach Jornen ‘MoonChopper’ Nishiyama and Zachary ‘Eley’ Stauffer have also been given their marching orders.
After several months away from the Valorant scene, MAD Lions returned to the game in January in a new region with the signing of Dark Ratio, one of the six teams that earned spots in the Challengers League via the qualifiers.
The team started the season off on the wrong foot and missed out on qualification for the Mid-Season Faceoff after posting a 1-4 record.
Before the start of Split 2, MAD Lions tried to shake things up and signed Hasan ‘BlackHeart’ Hammad and Joseph ‘Bjor’ Bjorklund. However, the changes failed to bring about an upturn in fortunes as the team once again won only one group match, finishing the season joint-last in circuit points.
In the relegation stage, MAD Lions bounced back from a first-round defeat to Turtle Troop by knocking Disguised out of the tournament. But then a 2-1 defeat to OREsports cost them their Challengers status.
MAD Lions have not announced whether they plan to return to Valorant in the future. Adam ‘Ange’ Milian, one of the departing players, suggested that the organization will be leaving the game.
In recent days, the future of tier-two Valorant has been a hot topic in the community, with several players urging Riot to announce its off-season plans to keep organizations interested in fielding teams.
Leo Faria, the global head of VALORANT esports, insisted that details about the off-season “are coming” and that the company is “committed to making tier 2 thrive.” However, he noted that the biggest changes to the ecosystem, with year-round tournaments and a strong connection with Premier, will only happen in 2024.
