LOUD resign their core, RRQ unveil roster, Salah joins Vitality

LOUD resign what’s left of their championship winning team, RRQ have announced their full roster and Vitality have made a good coaching hire.

There’s still a long way to go in Valorant free agency but most of the big names have already made a decision about their future. As rosters continue to take their final form, we have news coming out of every major region.

Aspas, Saadhak and Less resigned by LOUD

Just days after losing Sacy and Pancada to Sentinels, LOUD have finally wisened up and offered suitable extensions to their star players. Reports are coming out from Brazil that Saadhak, Less and Aspas have all agreed to contract extensions running through 2024 this weekend. A week ago we had reports coming out that management was trying to lowball their roster, who had just come from winning Valorant Champions 2022. With their coach leaving and the entirety of the roster exploring their options, many teams were interested in the reigning champions.

 

Of the few, it seems Aspas was the hottest name on the transfer market. Agents, managers, and teams from all regions had approached the explosive entry fragger but no deal was made. Saadhak is another name that was floated around by a few teams from North America, most notably, 100 Thieves.  With less than a week until the soft roster lock on October 15, LOUD is in a race against time to complete their lineup. There is absolutely no way they manage to replace their Initiator and Controller spots with adequate talent this late into the offseason.

Vitality announce Salah as head coach

In the early days of Valorant franchising, it seems that head coaches are the most important piece of the equation. A winning organization starts from the top, and with the scene still in its infancy, head coaches are taking the role of general managers as well. We saw it with Sentinels, who failed to make an impact on the free agency market until they brought in their coach of choice. 

It seems that Vitality are heading in the same direction, after a quiet off-season from them so far. They have yet to make a roster move after securing franchising a few weeks ago, but they might be on the right track. For Salah, this is the eighth team he’s been coaching on since Valorant was released, which is pretty impressive considering he is just 22 years of age. Previously, he was a head coach for FaZe Clan in 2020 and coached OG London United this year before joining Vitality.

RRQ announce their Valorant roster

On the other side of the globe, things seem to be moving at a similar pace. While some teams have announced their entire rosters, others are yet to make a move. Rex Requm Qeon are in the first pool of teams, with them unveiling their new roster just days after allowing their current team to explore options. 

A lot of controversies have surrounded the APAC region this off-season, with reports of shady business etiquette happening behind the scenes. Calls for establishing a player union and signing contracts with agents have been mentioned, as certain teams try to exploit their position of power. Forcing young players to sign contracts on short notice without proper handling of documentation is the first step towards getting on Riot’s bad side, and we saw how that worked out for G2.

Header: Riot Games