Field Level Media
01 Oct 2020, 00:10 GMT+10
The London Spitfire are in the process of releasing their entire roster and coaching staff as part of a pivot in strategy, according to a report by The Esports Observer.
According to the report, some players and staff already have been released while negotiations are ongoing with the remaining personnel.
The Cloud9-owned team won the inaugural Overwatch League title in 2018 but underwent a roster overhaul after an early exit from the Season 2 playoffs. Support player Younghoon "Krillin" Jung was the only player retained, and he was joined by 11 newcomers as part of a young roster.
The all-Korean team was assembled ahead of the planned moved to regional homestands for Season 3. However, the coronavirus pandemic put a halt to those plans, and several OWL teams struggled with communication and travel issues related to their international rosters.
Among them were the Vancouver Titans, who released their entire Korean roster midseason and debuted a largely North American team in May.
London finished 17th in the Season 3 regular-season standings with a 6-15 record and minus-24 map differential. Playing as the seventh seed in the Asia Bracket, the Spitfire were eliminated with a 3-1 loss to the Chengdu Hunters in the opening match of the playoffs
The Spitfire now are undergroing their second complete roster overhaul in as many years. They are moving to a roster model that cultivates new talent from teams such as the British Hurricane, the Spitfire's academy team, along with Western European players, according to TEO.
With no stated plans from the OWL about future live homestands, the Spitfire's new model is intended to focus on players with more connection to the geographical fan base while also saving hundreds of thousands of dollars in player salaries.
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