In-Depth
Team effort
Here’s a sampling of some of the e-sports organizations that field teams in major tournaments
Natus Vincere
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| Photo by: Getty Images |
Based in Ukraine, Natus Vincere means “born to conquer” in Latin. Its “Counter-Strike” team was the first to win three major tournaments in a single calendar year in 2010, and its “Dota 2” team captured the inaugural The International tournament in 2011. While its teams have not performed as well recently, the organization still houses some of e-sports’ most popular players, such as “Dota 2” player Danil “Dendi” Ishutin, who has 331,000 Twitter followers and consistently attracts 25,000-plus viewers to his Twitch streams.
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| Photo by: Getty Images |
Cloud 9
A relative newcomer to e-sports, this North American organization was founded in 2012 and is owned by former e-sports player Jack Etienne. While Cloud 9 competes in a number of games, it is perhaps best known for its “Counter-Strike” and “League of Legends” teams, both of which are considered among the best in North America. HTC, Logitech, DraftKings and Intel sponsor the organization.
Fnatic
The global organization has long been a powerhouse in the various iterations of first-person shooter “Counter-Strike.” It’s also become one of the strongest “League of Legends” teams, winning Riot Games’ European championship series five of the six times it’s been held. Sponsors include Monster Energy and European betting platform Dafabet.
Team Liquid
With its roots as a website promoting and writing about e-sports, the Dutch organization has also become a prominent e-sports organization with a stable of players competing in a variety of games, from “Dota 2” and “Counter-Strike” to “Halo” and “Super Smash Bros.” Team Liquid sports a bevy of sponsors including Nissan, HTC, Alienware and Quest Nutrition.
Evil Geniuses
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| Photo by: Getty Images |
Founded in 1999, Evil Geniuses is one of the longest-standing North America-based e-sports organizations. Better known as EG, the organization has found success in multiple games over its history, but perhaps none as successful as its “Dota 2” team, winning The International 2015 tournament and its first-place prize of $6.6 million, the largest first-place prize ever awarded in e-sports. Sponsors include Monster Energy, SanDisk and SteelSeries.
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| Photo by: @sktelecom_t1 / Twitter |
SK Telecom T1
Also known as SKT T1, this is the e-sports organization of SK Telecom, one of South Korea’s largest telecommunications companies. Competing primarily in “Starcraft” and “League of Legends,” the organization is known for its high-profile players and continued success. Its current star is 19-year-old Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, who is widely considered the best “League of Legends” player and reportedly has turned down million-dollar annual contracts from other teams.
