T1 is reportedly looking to expand its portfolio into CS2, and the organization may be recruiting in Brazil rather than in South Korea.
Most fans know T1 for its complete domination in competitive League of Legends and notable presence in competitive Valorant. The team has won four different League of Legends World Championships in LoL, with the most recent win coming in 2023. This is in addition to two Mid-Season Invitational titles and several wins in Korea’s domestic LCK. While T1’s Valorant team isn’t as acclaimed, they’ve still earned spots at VCT Masters tournaments throughout the years.
The T1 CEO has now announced that the organization may be looking to expand into a new game.
Here’s what’s known so far about T1’s potential move into Counter-Strike 2and where they may be trying to recruit from.
T1 CEO Joe March stated in an interview that T1 would be developing a CS2 team, with a roster coming from outside South Korea.
In a recent interview with Portuguese news company RTP Arena, CEO Joe March confirmed that T1 would likely be getting its own CS2 team. He additionally added that the team would be mainly targeting Brazil for its new talent.
Brazil is known for having a thriving CS2 scene. Four out of five teams from the Americas at the PGL Copenhagen Major in March 2024 were Brazilian teams. Additionally, Rio hosted one of the 2022 CS2 major events which saw more than 1.5 million peak concurrent viewers, making it the fifth-most viewed major of all time. With regional tournaments alongside bigger events, T1 could have their pick of free agents or try to poach from existing teams.
By comparison, T1 would have a more difficult time building a CS2 team from its home base in South Korea. One of the few remaining competitive CSGO teams based in Korea, MVP PK, switched to playing Valorant in 2020. Other main games in the country include League of Legends and StarCraft, but not as much interest remains in CS2.
T1 has also pulled from countries outside of Korea in its team-building before. For instance, its Valorant team also includes players from Canada, the United States, and Singapore. So scouting Brazil for talent wouldn’t be out of character for the T1 recruiting team.
IEM is set to return to Rio in October, alongside regional tournaments scheduled out for the rest of the year. If T1’s current record is anything to go by, then their CS2 team will be sure to make waves when they enter the international stage.
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