Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek’s addition to Sentinel’s professional Valorant team last month was a move few saw coming, and given the player’s enormous following on Twitch has a lot of fans excited. A large part of the intrigue is, of course, how he’ll perform after so many years away from the competitive scene, and how long his tenure with Sentinels will last. Well, Shroud spoke about the matter himself during stream from the team’s bootcamp yesterday evening, and it turns out that he’s potentially in it for the long haul.
“If franchising is a thing, and it is in LA, which is where I live, there’s a very good chance I will continue to play professional Valorant,” Shroud explained to his stream. He continued: “Is it with Sentinels? I don’t know, are they in franchising? I have no idea.”
Franchising is set to transform Valorant’s professional scene in 2023, changing the dynamic of how teams are involved with the game’s highest level of competition. Instead of the open qualifying system for the Valorant Champions Tour, which has existed up until this point, only a dozen or so partnered esports organizations will be involved in various super leagues around the world. Riot Games has been conducting interviews with North America’s most prestigious organizations all year, and question marks over Sentinels’ status still remain.
Depending on whether Sentinels make it in, which could rest on their performance at the Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) to attend Champions next month, it sounds as though Shroud may or may not stick with Sentinels. From his comments, he might otherwise entertain moving to an organization that did make it in to continue as a professional.
It’s worth that it’s highly like that Sentinels’ will make it into franchising regardless of its performance at LCQ given the organization’s huge popularity. Twinfinite has already speculated that signing a high-profile name such as Shroud’s was in itself a move to drive intrigue in the team and further secure a spot in franchising in our recent feature.
In any case, Shroud’s enthusiasm for professional Valorant suggests he’s performing well in practice and enjoying his time so far, which will be music to the ears of many.
If you’re interested in Shroud’s Valorant settings then we have the perfect guide for you here.