A few days ago when Jake got dropped, I thought to myself how crazy it would be if C9 picked up Runi again, and how he dragged the team to fourth place last year during the main season.

Sure enough...😅

Good luck Runi!

Totally agree. One man can make a difference. Like you said, look at Zellsis XD

The last time that this was reported about nukkye being dropped, I saw other users swirling rumors around that outside VCT nukkye was a toxic player. Whether or not those rumors are true, this is indeed not the move lmao, he was certainly one of their best players regardless

Idrc who wins, it will be a crazy game anyway

Not even close btw

Americas crowd is prolly my favorite aside from Japan crowd

les petits bouffons

For those who don't know he has already had this injury from a young age, it's chronic. He has doctors to advise him on what to do. Hope he comes back soon

Hmm let me guess Lakia gonna join later as a sub perhaps?

BaddyG will find a new team quickly I'm sure!

Most likely. I doubt they (XSET) will make any other changes to the existing roster (If this is true). This also means that, if true, most of the SEN boys will be on their way out. Let's see over the coming days how things play out...

GE gonna pull an EG LUL W org

Context: EG CS bought 2 other active CS rosters and currently have 15 players to rotate as they please.

Oh really? I had no idea haha, I thought Giants or even G2 were the biggest coming out of Spain. Thanks for the info! And yes I agree, a rebuild would be a great initiative, especially with so many players' contracts up in the air. Would be lovely to see the old core reunite. Anything can happen!

I agree with your point on Sentinels. Let's face it the only reason they got in is because they are the kings of content, haha. Again, this whole initiative is all about 1. Simplifying the VCT as a whole, but most importantly 2. Making the most of the VCT business model to extract as much potential - and cash - from it as possible.

And yes, I DO remember Heretics were a powerhouse around the time of First Strike but after the first core of pAura (to SMB), Nukkye (to G2), and Avova (also to G2) split ways, the team dropped like a stone to the point where almost everyone forgot it even existed and it's stayed that way until franchising was announced. I still stand by my point that they have a long way to go to get back to their glory days, but I'm excited to see what they'll bring to the table.

I am well aware lol, I am just giving my opinion who I feel who should have deserved it more. We all know this franchising thing is for both money and views.

Teams I DON'T think deserve the spots.

Note: I am not saying that any of these teams are BAD, I am saying we can all agree that so many other accomplished teams should have gotten into franchising. It's my opinion, feel free to disagree or discuss. Anyhow, those who got in, got in, they will have a chance to prove themselves anyways and those who didn't get in still have an entryway into the new system so W for all.

On the list
-EG: They have yet to produce significant results despite a rebuild and the addition of rising star and former AKREW player c0m. This spot should have gone to Guard or OpTic, with EG having to fight their way to the top which will help them gain experience and become a more solid team.
-Sentinels: The additions of Rawkus, Dani and Weltis and the temporary additions of experienced aimbotter Shroud and Mr. Sussy himself Zellsis helped Sentinels improve in leaps and bounds compared to their other abysmal performances throughout 2022. Their glory days were over long ago and I feel they, like EG, should also prove themselves and fight for that franchising slot when the opportunity arises. It is what it is, though, and despite an almost dead 2022 I remain optimistic for their future endeavours.
-Karmine Corp: Yes they won regionals but...sorry, Karmine who??? Not to sound harsh but I feel they need more experience within their region to become a noticeable, solid team. They have the results but I feel this spot should have gone to the likes of Acend or FPX who have already proven themselves.
-Detonation White: Detonation have yet to produce any solid results in Japan in spite of their continuous roster changes and efforts. This spot should have gone to Northeption or maybe even CR. Despite my pessimism, I still would like to see what they have to offer in the new partnered league. #baldbuff (BARCE XD)
-Global eSports: As a whole, India has some of the most talented FPS players out there, but somehow have still not managed to give any breakthrough results, for whatever reason. Global has been one of the most solid teams to come out of India. However, I feel the spot should have gone to Velocity instead who have shown far more consistency and performance in APAC as a whole despite also falling short. Nevertheless, too soon to say. If Global say, do a rebuild around their top talent SKrossi, maybe they will be able to begin their rise.
-Rex Regum Qeon: Having watched RRQ in both Phillipines Challengers and APAC Challengers to qualify to Masters, they have been nothing short of impressive. Their persistence despite their late breakthrough has captivated the hearts of many. Yet, I still feel they have a lot more to learn compared to other teams in their region such as Oasis and SBE (To be fair however, they did finish the year higher than Oasis so anyways let's see)
-Heretics: Another as yet unknown team in VCT who have also yet to prove themselves. I have watched them in smaller tournaments vs the likes of Vitality and Giants. It would be harsh to say that they are "just another team" with Keloqz being the only player who has made a name for himself and the recent addition of former SMB IGL pAura, but honestly I have yet to see anything extraordinary out of this team. I feel this spot should have gone to Case or even FOKUS, the former of which put up a good fight in regionals and the latter of which made a late charge in EMEA Challengers 2 2022. I feel that even KOI who recently added Magnum and rebuilt their squad deserve their current slot more than Heretics.

Not on the list
-G2: With the recent controversy, no explanation needed here. Yes they have the results but they still have much to prove. Personally I expect changes after the org kept their roster and failed to produce significant results.
-BIG eSports: They have shown promise but sadly too little, too late. I think we can all agree that of all their players Aslan is the only one who produces eye-popping plays.
-ORDER: Also too little too late and the org is in deep shit as of late as well.
-Full Sense: I love this team and their comeback to make 2021 Champions was great. However they seem to have drowned throughout 2022 to the likes of Xerxia, FW and MiTH. I also expect changes within this team.
-MiTH: Speaking of which, yes they haven't gone unnoticed. But if you look how far behind they are compared to the Xerxia roster you can understand why Riot didn't pick them.
-TSM: TSM is one of the most accomplished orgs out there but, again, their glory days are long gone. The pain seeing OpTic miss out on the league is understandable but I honestly wasn't surprised TSM didn't get in. Don't get me wrong, TSM has many talented players, but they still have a lot to prove and their glory days are long gone. I hope to see them make an appearance in future, after fighting back to the top like everyone else.

Notable names missing from this list.

-ACEND: Champions 2021 victors.
-FPX: Masters Copenhagen 2022 victors.
-Optic: Finished in the top 3 of every VCT event in 2022.
-The Guard: Stage 1 Challengers NA 2022 victors and Masters Reykjavik 2022 underdogs.
-Supermassive Blaze: Stage 3 Challengers EMEA 2021 runners-up.
-BOOM Esports: LCQ 2022 APAC victors.
-EDG: LCQ East Asia 2022 victors.
-Xerxia: Have made almost every single international LAN throughout 2021/2022 Edit: Rumours are circulating Xerxia are to disband and the newly elected Thai org Talon eSports will conduct a complete rebuild around those who choose to stay in VCT. Apparently, Surf will continue his studies, Crws will retire.
-Northeption: Rising stars of Japan who dethroned the Cinderella story of ZETA.
-Onic G: Consistent force in APAC.
-Guild Esports: Consistent force in EMEA.
-FaZe Clan: No explanation needed here.
-OG LDNU: Underdogs in EMEA throughout 2022.
-Crazy Raccoon: They made every event in 2021 VCT but just kept falling apart despite multiple strong comebacks. 2022 hasn't been much easier for them either with the likes of ZETA and Northeption taking over in Japan. In spite of all this, I feel they should have been given a second chance as they still have managed to scrap 3rd place despite all their problems.
-ONS: Again, no explanation needed here. Second only to DRX in their region all year.

Let me know if I missed more names you believe should have gotten the spots instead.

Wrong bracket brother, this is lower bracket KEK

HUH YEAH BNJ WAS THE PROBLEM! VERY CLEVER!

Agreed. They need the further exposure to other regions to in order to improve.

Watching Japan play just makes my heart break. I just wish I knew why they're struggling so much out of all the regions. Hope they can come back stronger.

Really hurts to see Japan underperform tourney after tourney. Hope they have improved this year!

Jesus wtf Derke 80 kills

NO WAY BRO GIVE ME YOUR TIME MACHINE

1-2 was correct!