North America has no sponsored Dota 2 teams after CR4ZY release

Steven Rondina Published 05/10/2020

Desperate times are calling for desperate measures when it comes to esports organization CR4ZY.

The European brand has announced the release of its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Dota 2 rosters. CR4ZY says this stems from a downturn in business.

“CR4ZY has terminated the contracts with all of its esports teams on the 30th of September in order to prepare for the upcoming year. Although this feels like a loss, we believe this was the right decision…With limited travel options, tournaments regionally locked, and lower investor/partner activity we believe it is the right time to reevaluate our strategy in 2020 and do our best to prepare for 2021,” CR4ZY CEO Antonio Meić said in a statement on the team’s website.

The statement reiterates that this is not a closure for CR4ZY, and that the organization will rebuild its stable of players in 2021.

CR4ZY releases a big hit for Dota 2

It was in 2019 when CR4ZY, formerly known as Valiance, was riding high on its CSGO team’s success. This ended when the team was sold for parts with all five of its players being transferred to G2 Esports and c0ntact Gaming.

From there CR4ZY spread its wings into a number of titles by signing a new CSGO lineup, sponsoring the Fighting PandaS Dota 2 team, and sponsoring R6 team MnM Gaming. The R6 team lasted a matter of months before its roster was broken up and transferred to other organizations, but the CSGO and Dota 2 teams remained active.

The CSGO team was largely relegated to regional play, but the Dota 2 squad was among the best in North America. Unfortunately, travel restrictions and event closures ultimately saw CR4ZY never appear on a major stage in the game. With the Dota Pro Circuit’s return date wholly unclear, CR4ZY opted to not bother waiting and instead look elsewhere.

This is doubly noteworthy as CR4ZY was possibly the only sponsored North American Dota 2 team with Evil Geniuses reportedly considering a move to Europe. Many esports organizations, including DIGNITAS, Immortals, and OpTic Gaming have stepped into the North American Dota 2 scene and then stepped back away after a short time.

If Evil Geniuses completes a move to Europe, this will leave North American Dota 2 with precisely zero sponsored Dota 2 teams when it previously had Cloud9, J.Storm, Chaos Esports Club, and more.

The current CR4ZY roster will likely continue competing together under a different name. Expect CR4ZY to announce new rosters at some point in 2021.

Steven Rondina

About Steven Rondina

Steven Rondina is a true lifelong gamer. His earliest memories are of playing video games, and he has continued playing them throughout his life with no plans to stop any time soon. Steven’s favorite franchises in gaming include Pokemon, Dark Souls, and Counter-Strike. He has previously published with Bleacher Report and other gaming outlets.

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