Legacy Esports had been an indomitable force in the 2020 OPL, taking first place in the regular season and playoffs of both Split 1 & 2. They start off 2021 with five consecutive losses as the team tries to rebuild after Riot Games did Oceania dirty last fall.
© Legacy Esports
In late 2020, Riot announced it would dissolve the OPL (Oceanic Pro League). The decision paired with favourable classification for Oceanic pro players not taking up import slots in North America, led many to leave OCE in favor of bigger regions.
Legacy failed to retain any of their star 2020 lineup as player contracts expired. Almost all members moved to NA Academy teams, with the exception of Halo who joined another OCE team. The departure of the 2020 lineup also saw head coach Jensen Goh leaving, an instrumental part of Legacy’s success last year.
This forced Legacy Esports to sign a completely new lineup consisting of:
Top – Winterer
Jungle – Sybol
Mid – Incursio
Bot – styled
Sup – emelg
Sub – Whynot
Clearly, with their less experienced lineup and being a newly formed team, Legacy Esports has had an extremely slow start to Split 1. Currently down 0-5, Legacy Esports are currently last place in the LCO. Their games have been underwhelming to say the least as they struggle to coordinate as individuals and as a unit.
Considering Legacy Esports had not only lost to former rivals the Chiefs, but even dropped matches against Gravitas, one of the weakest teams in the OPL, it is unlikely Legacy Esports will ever return to their former glory. The dissolution of the official Oceanic Pro League will also reduce exposure, and consequently, sponsorship revenue for teams like Legacy Esports.
Given Legacy had spent big in 2020, they will further be unlikely to afford such luxuries in the future. Being unable to afford expensive imports, their only road to recovery would lie in the development of new talent. However, despite the slow start, it is likely Legacy will slowly ramp up and finish as mid-tier team within the LCO.
Newly created team PEACE look like the most hopeful team to take their spot at the top. PEACE are currently on the opposite end of Legacy, finishing Week 2 5-0 in first place. PEACE despite being a new team have a stacked roster signed with various OCE veterans. These include former members of Avant Gaming, Dire Wolves and even Legacy Esports.
[cta id=2581 type=geo]It will be interesting to see how the LCO develops over the course of the Split. The LCO is still going to MSI and there is still a chance for Oceanic teams to make an international showing memorable. Week 3 will see the first part of the round-robin stage complete and re-matches commence with the race to Playoffs.
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