Shroud Reveals He's Making His Own VALORANT Team
Well, the rumours were true. Michael "Shroud" Grzesiek is officially bringing his own VALORANT team to the table. The pro player is known for his time with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), however, he's also dabbled with VALORANT since it was released last June. It turns out the VALORANT Champions Tour is enough to lure him out of retirement.
Stepping away from CS:GO to focus on streaming has been a lucrative move for Shroud, but given that he got his start with esports, it was only a matter of time before he picked up a gun and jumped back into the battlefield. Even if this isn't the start of Shroud's full-time return to gaming, his all-star VCT lineup is a good place to start.
Who is on Shroud's VALORANT team?
Shroud's long-awaited return has been on the cards for a while, but during his latest stream, he explained why now is the right time. It turns out, he was waiting for the arrival of new Agent, Kay/O. Hyping his own abilities for the upcoming North America VCT qualifier, Grzesiek said, "I’ll go run around as KAY/O and silence things".
As a force to be reckoned with, Shroud's own Avengers of VALORANT includes himself, Timmy "iiTzTimmy" An, Skyler "Relyks" Weaver. Leonardo "Laski" Arroyo, and Shawn "ShawnBM". Considering both Relyks and Laski are former CS:GO and Cloud9 alumni, these names alone should have rivals quaking in their boots.
Is Shroud's VALORANT team the start of his gaming return?
Shroud is back in the esports game for the first time since April 2018 when he retired from the pro-CS:GO circuit. He's previously teased a return as part of the Old Guys Club. The whispers were on the money, and although this isn't quite the lineup that was originally reported, the boys are back in town.
If you want to see whether Shroud still has what it takes or if he's gone rusty, the NA open qualifier will be shooting up the playing field from July 22-25. Shroud and the team will be hoping to qualify and move onto the Challengers 2 event with a $50,000 prize pool. We can see the headlines now if the prodigal son's return is as hyped as we think it'll be.