Renegades: The Legacy Lives On
Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles had mixed feelings when he sold his esports organization, Renegades. The branding, including the name and logo, embodied who he was. The new owners decided to keep the branding, leaving Monte conflicted.
Monte, along with his co-founder, established the LA Renegades in March of last year, acquiring a League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team. Renegades had a distinct brand as outlaws, which was reflected through their bandana logo and social media campaign. The organization quickly gained a dedicated fan base who would share selfies on social media with bandanas covering their faces.
Unfortunately, Renegades faced allegations of tampering and violating LCS rules, leading to Monte’s departure after just a year. In May, Riot banned Monte from being involved with an LCS team for a year. As a result, Monte decided to sell the organization and its teams. The Renegades brand and CS:GO team were later acquired by Boston Celtics NBA player, Jonas Jerebko, who decided to keep the branding with a minor change—renaming the organization the Detroit Renegades.
Now that Monte has moved on to casting Overwatch, we caught up with him to discuss his thoughts on the organization and the team.
Monte admitted that it was difficult for him to see the Renegades brand continue since he had put so much of his heart into it. However, he was glad that Jerebko and his team decided to keep using it. Monte trusted Jerebko and appreciated that he wanted to maintain the branding after everything that happened.
Jerebko and his team struggled with the decision of whether or not to keep the branding. In the end, they chose to stick with it, even if it meant facing backlash. Monte believed that potential sponsors and investors liked the community engagement and overall branding, making it easier for Jerebko to continue using it.
One of the main reasons Jerebko bought Renegades was the CS:GO team, which Monte cared deeply about. He wanted to make sure the team would be well taken care of and given the financial support they needed. Jerebko’s expertise in sports business made him the perfect partner for Monte.
As Monte focuses on casting Overwatch, he doesn’t have much time to run a team. When asked if he would consider owning a team again, he responded with a firm “no.” He believes that owning a team could create a conflict of interest with his future plans for casting and that it would be unethical to cast a team he owns. Additionally, Monte feels that starting a new organization is next to impossible with franchising coming soon and the need for millions of dollars in venture capital.
Although Monte may not run an esports team again, the Renegades and his legacy will continue to thrive.
Renegades, branding, MonteCristo, esports, CS:GO, ownership, Riot, LCS, Jonas Jerebko, Overwatch, casting, legacy