How could CEO Steve Arhancet’s plan to fix Team Liquid in 2023 turn out?

League of Legends season 2022 was a year of high expectations for two major LCS powerhouses, and in the end, we got a bag of mixed results.

The LCS Summer split ended a few days ago, with Cloud9 claiming the title in a 3-0 sweep over 100 Thieves. It was a rocky road to this point, but at least they got the job done. We covered their road to the top in this article. Their rivals Team Liquid, however, cannot say the same. Coming one game of a World’s appearance surely stings, but even that wouldn’t be enough to meet expectations.

Team Liquid CEO speaks on 2022 season

In a recently released statement, co-owner and Co-CEO of Team Liquid Steve Arhancet, addressed the situation. He explained that going into 2022, the organization constructed an eight-figure roster in salary alone, on top of the buyouts for imported players. Aiming to create the best roster the region has seen in the last decade, he convinced investors and shareholders that this is their year.

Since Worlds would be held in North America this year, it would be a big opportunity for everyone involved to see a dominant Team Liquid on the big stage. Sadly, things didn’t pan out as they had hoped.

Team Liquid lost two five-game series in which they could have clinched a Worlds spot, finishing third and fourth in spring and summer, respectively. In recent history, Liquid have found success with high-budget rosters, but that will not be the method moving forward.

Arhancet mentioned that they are already working on a large number of roster changes that will happen heading into next year. Considering how dominant the Liquid academy roster has been over the past two years, it’s no surprise the org is looking to rebuild using the structure already in place.

Rebuilding 2023 Team Liquid

Despite being the team’s most consistent performer throughout the year, rumors are surfacing that jungler Lucas “Santorin” Larsen is looking to retire amid health concerns. With former TSM jungler Mingyi “Spica” Lu hitting free agency this move would make a lot of sense on the side of Team Liquid. In a competitive environment, jungle is one of the hardest roles to bring a rookie into, and considering Spica doesn’t occupy an import slot, it’s a great deal. As great as Steven “Hans sama” Liv has been in Europe, he just looked out of place on Team Liquid.

Given that TL Academy bot laner Sean “Yeon” Sung has made a few LCS appearances alongside the 2022 starting roster, it seems he is next up. He led his squad to two consecutive Proving Grounds titles in 2022, showed great chemistry with incumbent starter and TL legend, support Jo “CoreJJ” Yong-in, and doesn’t take up an import slot.

Top lane was also a question mark for Team Liquid this year, with their solo lanes looking out of sync. If they decide to import mid and jungle, Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau might be forced to leave his kingdom. TL Academy top laner Bradley “Bradley” Benneyworth has shown great progress after role swapping from mid to top this year, and if Liquid are willing to break the bank, 100 Thieves might be interested to give up star prospect Milan “Tenacity” Oleksij.

Both players have proven their quality through the developmental leagues, and even making appearances on the LCS stage. Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg might be the best LCS player of all time, but 2022 proved he is lacking in some departments. His inability to expand his champion pool with meta picks hurt Liquid the entire year and apart from his enormous price tag, there were also fit concerns.

If Team Liquid are committed to constructing a young and promising roster in 2023, they better gear up for the race for Vincent “Vetheo” Berrié. The French mid-lane prodigy is a free agent since Misfits sold their LEC spot, and he won the 2022 LEC Spring Split MVP. He has shown nothing but growth on top of his superb talent in his two years in the LEC, and he will be the off-season prize this year.

Header: Team Liquid