Travis Gafford's theory on IMT's departure.

Electro522·10/19/2017, 12:18:43 AM·31 votes·1,960 views

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZIQJawPNmM

He gives several reasons as to why he thinks this situation is NOT because of Overwatch, but instead, is because of the amount of money Immortals has been spending. Essentially, he thinks that Immortals are not monetarily sound.

He does, however, criticize Riot over not communicating this properly, which.....I have to agree to. I only found out about this because Travis' video was recommended on YouTube for me.

35 Comments

Stillname10/19/2017, 1:58:56 AM7 votes

It is REALLY weird to me to say "Riot has not done a good job of communicating this"... They haven't even officially announced who is in the league yet all that has come out is someone with a source saying who has and has not made it.

It is like sneaking into your parents closet on December 1st and then complaining to them they bought you the wrong toy before they have even been wrapped.

As far as IMT not making it though it is really tough to say if it is good or not. I do think that the main attraction should be the players and the team name is just the person signing the paychecks.

I liked IMT but I will probably like whatever team Pobelter and Olleh end up on anyway so I am not really that concerned. Sucks for the players but maybe one of the teams coming in will look to buy the full roster coach and all.

AzureDragoon10/19/2017, 12:59:13 AM4 votes

Overall, a monetary issue is certainly the most plausible answer (and being boring/not something the average fan of a team tends to discuss, something that could come off as a sudden surprise, since that's not something most E-sport teams openly advertise unless asked directly). As an Immortals fan, it would be sad to see the team I've been cheering on since they started and really get me into watching e-sports vanish over lack of stable funding, but it is a major reality of this franchise system.

Yes teams will get the stability they've been demanding, yes, the system is being switched to a Bo1 so teams can have a bit easier time to build dedicated fan bases through marketing and viewership. But if there is a significant risk of a team suddenly collapsing and leaving things unfunded, then I can understand that being of concern to being given a franchise spot. Just wish/hope there would be more transparency and information on all this, so everyone understands what happened.

GeminiRune10/19/2017, 1:15:02 AM1 votes

To me it feels like Riot's marketing scheme for its teams has shifted to money AND reputation. Simply reputation alone is no longer a key factor and the money forms the reputation through its investors to another extent. Immortals, while looking like a promising organization did not have that monetary stability from what the articles say.

Unfortunately, this is mostly redundant to a couple of comments and outcries. Personally, I've seen the community fall mixed on franchising. This just so happens to be the reality that franchising brings. What upsets me more is just how sudden it hits the players; it's just unfair and I kinda feel a bit of where Travis is going with this.

Miror B10/19/2017, 1:28:53 AM1 votes

For me, it's looking more and more likely that the main reason for all these current LCS teams getting denied has to do with overwatch. NV was tied to the overwatch league, they're out. Speculation is going around about Dig being in the overwatch league, they're out. IMT is in the overwatch league, they're out. Considering all the known "in" teams (EF, C9, CLG, TSM, TL, Optic, GSW) aren't really tied to it, a case could be made for that being a variable involved and not the financial stability, as if that were the case then I'm questioning TSM being in when they currently (from what I can understand) have ZERO outside investments and are having a hard time fielding multiple esports teams.

RottedApples10/19/2017, 4:21:02 AM1 votes

If it was a monetary issues, would IMT be able to solve this issue simply by being a permanent part of the league (Allowing them to get better/more permanent sponsorship deals)

Were they betting on high value sponsors by looking like a strong/permenant addition to the league? This would have been something they could only achieve by proving relevance split after split and not getting relegated. If that then is the case this could have solved those issues.

I'm just speculating at this point and I really don't know shit about their structure or anything. But if what riot wants us to believe is true, they should be able to make more money becoming a permanent part of the league, thus negating higher spending. Right?

Snowplosion10/19/2017, 2:22:15 PM1 votes

I've been trying to explain this but I kinda suck at explaining stuff...

III BAKURYU III 10/19/2017, 9:58:13 PM1 votes

Riot are trying to eliminate any teams that does better than TSM at Worlds, so TSM don't look so inept.