Team Coast acquires Final Five
Team Coast has recently acquired challenger team Final Five and made some roster changes as part of the deal. Coast jungler Impaler and support Sheep will join Final Five’s starting roster, while KonKwon will move from Final Five to the Coast support position, and WelcomeToHeaven will fill Impaler’s spot in the jungle.
Why did Coast make such a drastic move? It seems like they are trying to salvage the Spring Split and set themselves up for the Summer Split.
This move feels like Coast is hedging its bets. They are currently in danger of being relegated to the Challenger scene. Even if they win all their games, they still have to rely on other teams not winning any more games to avoid relegation. Their chances of playing in the Summer Split are slim.
Unless Coast accepts relegation, they might stack up Final Five to earn their way into the LCS and continue as Coast. A few changes to the roster are expected after this disastrous split.
This acquisition and roster swap is either a savvy maneuver to ensure Coast’s LCS standing or an exploitation of the relegation/promotion rule set.
I personally believe it’s the latter interpretation. Coast wants to defeat the relegation system and prevent other organizations from taking their spot in the LCS. This harms the NA competitive scene, as it goes against the purpose of relegation/promotion.
Coast’s move could limit the growth of the NA LCS, and Riot should keep a close eye on the situation and consider implementing policies to prevent similar maneuvers in the future.
Of course, Final Five could still lose out on the Promotion tournament and render this whole situation irrelevant.