T1 Officially Comments on the Zeus and Gumayusi Incident
Recently, as previously announced, T1 officially held a press conference to clarify all the issues that the fans of this team have been questioning since the beginning of the year. Perhaps this is a rare occasion where a League of Legends team that has just won the World Championship has to hold a press conference about such troubles. Among the issues that the audience is concerned about are the incidents involving Zeus and Gumayusi.
Accordingly, while still acknowledging that ThePlay (Zeus’s representative) has not had suitable negotiations with T1, COO Josh Ahn also apologized to Zeus and his family for the troubles they encountered after the transfer saga erupted. T1 also stated that they can fully meet Zeus’s salary requirements, but on the condition that it must be based on the performance of Zeus and T1 during the season.
This means that the drama surrounding Zeus can be considered officially over, and T1 has completely taken responsibility for their part. However, in the COO’s statement, there was an additional remark: “Gumayusi also mentioned that he wanted HLE to go to MSI instead of Gen.G, stemming from his friendship and sincerity towards Zeus.” Nevertheless, this remark ignited further frustrations when Gumayusi’s situation was subsequently brought into question.
Specifically, COO Josh stated that he and CEO Joe were also surprised when Gumayusi was benched, and the COO confirmed, “We and the coaching staff had disagreements about the lineup arrangements.” At the same time, the COO also indicated that the final roster selection is up to the coaching staff, after which the operational positions were announced.
COO’s Statement Sparks New Controversy
After the COO’s apology, it can be said that the situation of Zeus has concluded, and this player does not deserve the criticisms he has faced throughout this time. Additionally, the situation with Gumayusi also reflects the contradictions and inconsistencies from the higher-ups at T1. General Manager Becker and Coach KkOma had previously asserted that T1 wanted to gather data, while COO Josh confirmed that he and CEO Joe Marsh were not aware of this matter.
After the COO’s statement, it seems that new controversies will arise. But ultimately, only the players are the ones who have to “take the heat” due to the confusing and unreasonable handling from their own leadership.