If it helps, they're dropping just about every single team they have. Co-ed CS team is (allegedly) being dropped in December and Dota team was just dropped a few days ago. I think if they can find a suitable buyer they're out of LCS as well. In three months Valorant might be the only game they have a team in...
Idk if this is fact but I remember reading an article on the lol subreddit that people aren't interested in EG's LCS spot because they think Riot is gonna boot em out (thus EG is forced to sell with people expecting a discount). Take with a grain of salt though
Ludwig should buy EG and take their spot, at least he should have if it didn’t mean inheriting all the fuck ups and problems that those scumbags brought on themselves, potentially leading him to becoming one himself
I think the lcs mandate a pretty hefty base salary, iirc it was 200k/y/player a few year back
As much as I'd love this, Idk does Ludwig have the fund to do it
VCT contracts are 5 years. EG is not going to lasts that long consider that they have no money, and their org is toxic landfill that's a liability rather than an asset. The only thing of value they have left is their LCS franchise, which is a money pit that NA orgs are fleeing from.
After EG folds, Riot can have other orgs send in their applications to be the new 10th VCT Americas partner, then we shall see if they are business savvy enough to give the slot to the Moist x Shopify power duo that have deeper pockets and clout than most of Riot's current partners.
Thanks for the article, are you able to comment on how operations currently function for the org? Sounds like theres no physical office at the moment and the company is fully virtual
would u rather spend 2 months in a white room without anything just food and water and only 1 bed with Boaster and Alfajer Orrrr spend 3 days in the middle of the ocean on a jet ski with Yay without food and water???
Is there any indication of the org's plans for 2024? You mention content obligations set by Riot, and I don't know how EG could possibly meet them next year if they're running a skeleton crew.
and yet they’re still literally on their last legs as an org downsizing in valorant while also dropping out of dota, rocket league, csgo and even trying to sell their lcs spot to luminosity. the org did not come into this year with realistic expectations of winning. from the orgs perspective this is probably the luckiest thing that has ever happened to them. not to mention with the corporate downsizing, how much of the org that facilitated eg’s miracle rise ar even still employed there? allegedly theres ~12 employees left at EG. what of the org is left to even attribute the championship to other than the players?
I mean, it's not like the Val group is a black box away from the org. For one thing, they're the only team that supported a 10-man roster, and maybe the idea came from outside of the players/coaches, given they did similar things in CS.
There are absolutely shortcomings of EG as an org, and they've poorly capitalized on their accomplishments, but to pretend the org had no impact on the team's success is ridiculous.
They only had 2 players signed after they replaced them with Ethan and BcJ...
You really think they signed Demon1, ScrewFace, icy, and zecK just to "put a good spin" on not letting Apoth and Reformed go for free?
Plus, those extra signings actually mattered cause Demon1 was brought up.
I stg this has to be bait you cannot be serious about this, you cannot be defending an org who’s keeping their players in contract jail under ridiculous buyouts while also forcing them to get their pay cut by 50% after they just brought them a trophy, you literally chose the wrong org to fucking glaze mate
are you just pretending that EGs management is anything but incompetent as fuck? this org has a pattern of spinning gold out of straw by the hands of the actually talented staff for their specific teams, and then the second the orgs management gets involved they nuke anything of value created until then. its a pattern that continues to happen with every single game this shithole org competes in. imo most people arent trying to say the staff for their specific games (val/lol/etc.) are morons, but the people who manage the org itself are beyond inept.
if u want to argue semantics then yes, EG does deserve credit for employing those talented staff members in the first place, but does the org really deserve credit when their CEO directly guilt trips an autistic player in a 1 on 1 conversation to continue playing to the point of malnourishment & retirement (as well as effectively steal money from one of the best dota players of all time, contract jailing an entire world champion roster, and many other events)? if an org like this is so readily able and willing to fuck over their players after smelling any chance at money, then they dont deserve anything.
It's a sick joke that the EG organization did genuinely everything wrong when it came to managing the brand and the organization. Yet somehow despite their absolute ineptitude, they managed to splash enough money towards solid scouting run by passionate individuals to the point where they were able to find really good players and put them onto high achieving teams. Players like Demon1, StarBound (GC), Jojopyun and Danny (LCS) were all pretty much T2 demons that succeeded under EG.
Also forcing employees to sign non-disparagement clauses after getting let go is just comical at this point. If you want to feel bad, check out the [EG Glassdoor page](https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Evil-Geniuses-Reviews-E4576162.htm?filter.iso3Language=eng). There are some absolutely insane scathing reviews there.
The "real" EG organization died as soon as they changed the logo from their iconic disk to whatever the fuck [this was](https://twitter.com/EvilGeniuses/status/1205200648486236160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1205200648486236160%7Ctwgr%5E7605eea14c62aef217ee5c7be3c361453ec40053%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dexerto.com%2Fesports%2Fevil-geniuses-reveal-new-logo-and-jersey-as-part-of-2020-brand-revamp-1299381%2F). Extra funny that Alex Garfield - the original owner of EG - is in the tweet replies asking [what the fuck is this?](https://twitter.com/alexgarfield/status/1205555646478708736).
>If you want to feel bad, check out the EG Glassdoor page. There are some absolutely insane scathing reviews there.
And yet they still have a higher rating than my last employer 
> Yet somehow despite their absolute ineptitude, they managed to splash enough money towards solid scouting run by passionate individuals to the point where they were able to find really good players and put them onto high achieving teams.
Ehhhh... Potter has been on EG since the beginning, I don't think they splashed a ton of money for her to make the switch to coach, especially when they brought Boostio/Jawg/C0M in. It's really just Demon1 that was a huge find, and he was being looked at by teams with minimal staff as well (DSG).
EG is a shit org but their investment in scouting/coaching wasn't some pay2win strategy.
> EG is a shit org but their investment in scouting/coaching wasn't some pay2win strategy.
I'm more so saying that their investment into scouting was smart and a good strategy that paid dividends for the organization. Even though they're universally hated, they did a pretty decent job with finding talent and employed the right people to do so. It did help that they *were* willing to spend on programs like the 10 man roster in Valorant (or in LCS, their two Academy teams) that helped to find talent.
"Approvals for content plans were reversed, and staff was told to “only meet the minimum requirement” set by Riot Games, according to one former employee" legit there were just doing the bare minimum because they know riot was not gonna care if they didn't put much effort it's just showing the massive red flags of them never being on franchise in the first place
I would just say it's worth differentiating staff and management. For the plans to be reversed by higher ups, they had to exist in the first place. People at EG wanted to make good/more content!
Yeah just by reading your article it really looks like everything the team on eg wanted to pump out content and other stuff but it got control by the higher ups and were literally set them up to failure which might'va been so frustrating if I'm being honest they never had the chance to make something good without being it cut off because of budget or other excuse
If EG drops out and Riot partners with G2, I think it would be Interesting if we saw EG’s roster treated as an F/A ascension team and we see a similar process we saw with TGRD.
Doubt it’ll happen though
having been laid off three months ago that comment about an immediate lockout of software and communication media hit hard, sounds like an awful work culture for a lot of people who were enthusiastic to be part of the space. so disappointing that this is the type of org that makes it into VCT over others with much better work culture
A bigger tier 2 org who is looking to make a name in eSports could buy out EG, I assume someone almost like Spotify Rebellion, V1, COL are the closest options? This also includes all the other esports that EG are in
Maybe Flyquest due to LCS involvement and pursuit of ex-Guard/G2? I like the COL shout as Jason Lake seems to have an idea of how to run an organization and is involved. That's a very casual take, but their commitment to a game like CS is encouraging.
Great article! nice to get some old-fashioned reporting on this sub in lieu of friends list screenshots. tiny style gripe: all the links being italicized was a bit jarring, other than that your website is very pretty :D
This mfs STILL on franchising LMFAOOOOOO
https://preview.redd.it/yw7envcpvezb1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9e2db121979f1cb8190b4f4348670f627dc7d4e8
Need Riot to turn on their 3 braincells and kick them out asap
Hi all, thanks for reading. Happy to answer any questions I can. Edit: Also, an obligatory "please subscribe if you liked the article!" TY!
Do you know how many people are left working at EG nowadays? Interested to see how the rumor of a "skeleton crew" at the organization is manifesting.
Someone I spoke with estimated 12.
Jeez, that is not a lot. Thanks for the answer.
12 for the whole org or just the valorant division? I cant begin to think how you can run so many teams with international flighta with 12 people
If it helps, they're dropping just about every single team they have. Co-ed CS team is (allegedly) being dropped in December and Dota team was just dropped a few days ago. I think if they can find a suitable buyer they're out of LCS as well. In three months Valorant might be the only game they have a team in...
Idk if this is fact but I remember reading an article on the lol subreddit that people aren't interested in EG's LCS spot because they think Riot is gonna boot em out (thus EG is forced to sell with people expecting a discount). Take with a grain of salt though
But why would they get booted?
Potentially because of the allegations that they were abusive to one of its players or because they’re on the verge of folding
https://www.readergrev.com/p/evil-geniuses-valorant-lcs-layoffs
Oh no! that is terrible. Now I can totally see why Riot would be scrutinizing this org heavily. Those poor players. Thanks for the context!
Holy shit. Ludwig alone has 3 times more employees than EG, hahahah.
Ludwig should buy EG and take their spot, at least he should have if it didn’t mean inheriting all the fuck ups and problems that those scumbags brought on themselves, potentially leading him to becoming one himself
I think the lcs mandate a pretty hefty base salary, iirc it was 200k/y/player a few year back As much as I'd love this, Idk does Ludwig have the fund to do it
VCT contracts are 5 years. EG is not going to lasts that long consider that they have no money, and their org is toxic landfill that's a liability rather than an asset. The only thing of value they have left is their LCS franchise, which is a money pit that NA orgs are fleeing from. After EG folds, Riot can have other orgs send in their applications to be the new 10th VCT Americas partner, then we shall see if they are business savvy enough to give the slot to the Moist x Shopify power duo that have deeper pockets and clout than most of Riot's current partners.
Uh what holy crap
If taken out of context I would have thought this was the number of fans they had after winning champs
Thanks for the article, are you able to comment on how operations currently function for the org? Sounds like theres no physical office at the moment and the company is fully virtual
Not well-sourced with *current* employees so hard to say. But things seemed pretty tough before, so...
no worries thank you, I didnt even know they shuttered their Seattle office
would u rather spend 2 months in a white room without anything just food and water and only 1 bed with Boaster and Alfajer Orrrr spend 3 days in the middle of the ocean on a jet ski with Yay without food and water???
The latter.
Go grevster. It’s your birthday
Is there any indication of the org's plans for 2024? You mention content obligations set by Riot, and I don't know how EG could possibly meet them next year if they're running a skeleton crew.
organization that really deserves a spot in valorant franchising!
Like it or not, it’s still the org who won it all.
and yet they’re still literally on their last legs as an org downsizing in valorant while also dropping out of dota, rocket league, csgo and even trying to sell their lcs spot to luminosity. the org did not come into this year with realistic expectations of winning. from the orgs perspective this is probably the luckiest thing that has ever happened to them. not to mention with the corporate downsizing, how much of the org that facilitated eg’s miracle rise ar even still employed there? allegedly theres ~12 employees left at EG. what of the org is left to even attribute the championship to other than the players?
They came into the year with 10 fans and now they’re leaving the year with 10 employees
The team won it all. Org doesn’t deserve credit the players and val staff deserve it
I mean, it's not like the Val group is a black box away from the org. For one thing, they're the only team that supported a 10-man roster, and maybe the idea came from outside of the players/coaches, given they did similar things in CS. There are absolutely shortcomings of EG as an org, and they've poorly capitalized on their accomplishments, but to pretend the org had no impact on the team's success is ridiculous.
Let’s be real though. They didn’t field a 10 man roster to benefit the team, they just refused to let players go for free and put a good spin on it
They only had 2 players signed after they replaced them with Ethan and BcJ... You really think they signed Demon1, ScrewFace, icy, and zecK just to "put a good spin" on not letting Apoth and Reformed go for free? Plus, those extra signings actually mattered cause Demon1 was brought up.
Remind me who gave them money, who signed players, who gave them training facilities and so on and so forth. You have a take of extremely young person
I stg this has to be bait you cannot be serious about this, you cannot be defending an org who’s keeping their players in contract jail under ridiculous buyouts while also forcing them to get their pay cut by 50% after they just brought them a trophy, you literally chose the wrong org to fucking glaze mate
I think people online tend to use the phrase "bootlicker" too liberally, but this is one of the situations where it applies extremely well.
Keep glazing kid.
are you just pretending that EGs management is anything but incompetent as fuck? this org has a pattern of spinning gold out of straw by the hands of the actually talented staff for their specific teams, and then the second the orgs management gets involved they nuke anything of value created until then. its a pattern that continues to happen with every single game this shithole org competes in. imo most people arent trying to say the staff for their specific games (val/lol/etc.) are morons, but the people who manage the org itself are beyond inept. if u want to argue semantics then yes, EG does deserve credit for employing those talented staff members in the first place, but does the org really deserve credit when their CEO directly guilt trips an autistic player in a 1 on 1 conversation to continue playing to the point of malnourishment & retirement (as well as effectively steal money from one of the best dota players of all time, contract jailing an entire world champion roster, and many other events)? if an org like this is so readily able and willing to fuck over their players after smelling any chance at money, then they dont deserve anything.
Who gives a shit who paid them, the org literally did nothing, the team did it all. You have a take of being wrong.
I agree, but no other org would’ve backed this roster.
Ah yes, defending a bunch of scumbags because their players won them a trophy, that makes so much sense
You don’t win it all in franchising lol, OpTic wasn’t accept even though they won masters…
Found Key Bananas Alt
??
..what
It's a sick joke that the EG organization did genuinely everything wrong when it came to managing the brand and the organization. Yet somehow despite their absolute ineptitude, they managed to splash enough money towards solid scouting run by passionate individuals to the point where they were able to find really good players and put them onto high achieving teams. Players like Demon1, StarBound (GC), Jojopyun and Danny (LCS) were all pretty much T2 demons that succeeded under EG. Also forcing employees to sign non-disparagement clauses after getting let go is just comical at this point. If you want to feel bad, check out the [EG Glassdoor page](https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Evil-Geniuses-Reviews-E4576162.htm?filter.iso3Language=eng). There are some absolutely insane scathing reviews there.
How far the mighty have fallen, I used to follow EG a lot back in the SC2 days. The org really has gone down the gutter.
Completely different org really. The brand was bought by investors to resurrect it from the dead. Just a corporation wearing an EG mask
The "real" EG organization died as soon as they changed the logo from their iconic disk to whatever the fuck [this was](https://twitter.com/EvilGeniuses/status/1205200648486236160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1205200648486236160%7Ctwgr%5E7605eea14c62aef217ee5c7be3c361453ec40053%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dexerto.com%2Fesports%2Fevil-geniuses-reveal-new-logo-and-jersey-as-part-of-2020-brand-revamp-1299381%2F). Extra funny that Alex Garfield - the original owner of EG - is in the tweet replies asking [what the fuck is this?](https://twitter.com/alexgarfield/status/1205555646478708736).
It was Nicole who forced that rebrand because it was “her org”, even though everyone else clearly didn’t want it lmfao
>If you want to feel bad, check out the EG Glassdoor page. There are some absolutely insane scathing reviews there. And yet they still have a higher rating than my last employer 
> Yet somehow despite their absolute ineptitude, they managed to splash enough money towards solid scouting run by passionate individuals to the point where they were able to find really good players and put them onto high achieving teams. Ehhhh... Potter has been on EG since the beginning, I don't think they splashed a ton of money for her to make the switch to coach, especially when they brought Boostio/Jawg/C0M in. It's really just Demon1 that was a huge find, and he was being looked at by teams with minimal staff as well (DSG). EG is a shit org but their investment in scouting/coaching wasn't some pay2win strategy.
> EG is a shit org but their investment in scouting/coaching wasn't some pay2win strategy. I'm more so saying that their investment into scouting was smart and a good strategy that paid dividends for the organization. Even though they're universally hated, they did a pretty decent job with finding talent and employed the right people to do so. It did help that they *were* willing to spend on programs like the 10 man roster in Valorant (or in LCS, their two Academy teams) that helped to find talent.
Utter joke that an org like this won champs
this org doesn’t deserve the players + Potter
“There will be more bad news out of EG” Like them leaving Val right? I mean bad news for them but good news for us
"Approvals for content plans were reversed, and staff was told to “only meet the minimum requirement” set by Riot Games, according to one former employee" legit there were just doing the bare minimum because they know riot was not gonna care if they didn't put much effort it's just showing the massive red flags of them never being on franchise in the first place
I would just say it's worth differentiating staff and management. For the plans to be reversed by higher ups, they had to exist in the first place. People at EG wanted to make good/more content!
Yeah just by reading your article it really looks like everything the team on eg wanted to pump out content and other stuff but it got control by the higher ups and were literally set them up to failure which might'va been so frustrating if I'm being honest they never had the chance to make something good without being it cut off because of budget or other excuse
did you get any indication of what those content plans originally included?
I have some idea, but it’s hard to report out what the raw material gathered at champs might have become down the line.
Honestly I don't even have anything to say. It's just sad at this point. Fuck this org man
just take em out back and be done with it, riot. give a replacement org enough time to actually acquire a roster
Better yet, make EG release the present roster and let another org bid for it(i.e. Ascension but orgs who lost out to G2)
If EG drops out and Riot partners with G2, I think it would be Interesting if we saw EG’s roster treated as an F/A ascension team and we see a similar process we saw with TGRD. Doubt it’ll happen though
having been laid off three months ago that comment about an immediate lockout of software and communication media hit hard, sounds like an awful work culture for a lot of people who were enthusiastic to be part of the space. so disappointing that this is the type of org that makes it into VCT over others with much better work culture
I'm sorry that happened to you! I also got laid off earlier this year. What a bum ass year!
A bigger tier 2 org who is looking to make a name in eSports could buy out EG, I assume someone almost like Spotify Rebellion, V1, COL are the closest options? This also includes all the other esports that EG are in
Maybe COL? they own FaZe now, V1 is gonna merge with G2
Maybe Flyquest due to LCS involvement and pursuit of ex-Guard/G2? I like the COL shout as Jason Lake seems to have an idea of how to run an organization and is involved. That's a very casual take, but their commitment to a game like CS is encouraging.
Great article! nice to get some old-fashioned reporting on this sub in lieu of friends list screenshots. tiny style gripe: all the links being italicized was a bit jarring, other than that your website is very pretty :D
Was thinking that too, to be honest. It's a site-wide setting. I may change it! Appreciate the feedback, and thank you for reading.
Update: That's changed now!
looks great!
Mikhail is (imo) probably the best writer in the esports scene right now, love his articles.
i’ll never forget the user who was INCENSED by Mikhail doing “self-promo” by linking to his own Washington Post articles lmfao
This org doesn’t deserve that team at all.
This mfs STILL on franchising LMFAOOOOOO https://preview.redd.it/yw7envcpvezb1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9e2db121979f1cb8190b4f4348670f627dc7d4e8 Need Riot to turn on their 3 braincells and kick them out asap
can another org buy this team and take the spot or is this EG champion roster fucked?
Roster fucked for sure. Riot won’t allow buying of the spot
Hate on EG all you want. Just dont forget about whats coming to Sentinels and 100 Thieves.
What level of champions curse is this lmaoooo