Cloud9 (esports)

Cloud9
Location Los Angeles, California, United States
Founded 2012
Manager(s) Jack Etienne, Tres Saranthus
Sponsors HTC
Website Official website

Cloud9 (C9) is an American esports organization. Sponsored by HTC and previously known as Cloud9 G2A, it fields teams in League of Legends, Call of Duty: Black Ops III, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Overwatch, Smite, and Heroes of the Storm.[1]

Cloud9's League of Legends team competes in the North American League of Legends Championship Series and has finished either first or second in the league since it joined in the summer of 2013 except for the summer split in season 5.[2] The Cloud9 Tempest team competes in the North American League of Legends Challenger Series. The owner and manager of the team is Jack Etienne. In 2015, Cloud9's Heroes of the Storm team, won the 2015 Heroes of the Storm World Championship, becoming the first world champions of the game.[3]

History

Cloud9 has its origins in the League of Legends team of Orbit Gaming, which had several current C9 team members.[4] After Lone Star Clash in November 2012, members of Orbit Gaming signed with Quantic Gaming, which had only been sponsoring a StarCraft II team. Quantic Gaming was an esports team and media company founded in 2010 by Simon Boudreault, a Quebec native who had come upon a large inheritance upon the death of his father and decided to invest nearly all of it in esports.[5] During its existence, several players and coaches claimed that they consistently missed payments from Boudreault.[6] When QG failed to make the 2013 LCS Spring split Boudreault cut off contact with society and soon dissolved the company. Despite being owed tens of thousands of dollars, former players say they are no longer considering legal action against Boudreault. Former Team SoloMid manager Jack Etienne bought the team for US$10,000 in December 2013 and also became its manager.[7]

In July 2014 the C9 Smite team disbanded just before the start of the Smite Pro League.[8] On May 6, 2014 Cloud9 signed Super Smash Bros. Melee player MaNg0.[9] Cloud9 acquired CompLexity Gaming's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team in August 2014. The team left compLexity after it received a better offer from C9 before renewing their contract with their previous team.[10] Cloud9 announced the formation of a Challenger Series team and held open tryouts.[11] On November 26, 2014 Cloud9 added a Halo team by acquiring The Agency, which boasted several experienced players.[12] In December 2014 Cloud9 withdrew their Dota 2 team from the Chinese I-League because of concerns over poor playing and living conditions and were subsequently banned for the next seasons for doing so.[13] In February 2015 Riot suspended C9 Tempest after it was revealed that the team had illegally used a non-roster member during a game.[14]

League of Legends

Pre-Season 3

During the off-season, the Quantic Gaming organization went bankrupt and shut down operations, leaving its League of Legends team without a sponsor. Competing first under the name Team NomNom and then Cloud9, Nientonsoh, Hai, Yazuki, Wild Turtle and LemonNation secured a spot in the Season 3 North American Offline Qualifier for the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS).[6] However, Cloud9 was knocked out of the tournament in the group stage after losing to Azure Gaming and future LCS team Team MRN in a close base race.[6]

Initially, Nientonsoh said that Cloud9 would disband in light of the loss. The team later decided to stay together, although Nientonsoh and Yazuki left the team.[6] Hai shifted from jungle to mid, and the team tried out new junglers and top laners in online competitions.

Season 3

On April 1, the Cloud9 roster of Hai, LemonNation, Meteos, Sneaky and Balls was reacquired by Quantic Gaming, now led by former COO Bernie Catalan. However, just a few weeks later the roster would once again become Cloud9 with previous TSM manager Jack Etienne becoming the manager and owner of the team.

On May 17 C9 placed first at the 2013 MLG Winter Championship Summer Promotion, defeating Velocity eSports 2–1 in the finals.

In the Summer Promotion Qualifier, Cloud9 went 5-0 to earn a spot in the LCS Summer Split, beating Team Astral Poke 2-0, and former LCS team compLexity 3-0.[15] Midway through the season, Cloud9 went on a 13-game win streak, the longest in LCS history. They went on to earn 25 victories, the record most in an LCS season split, and won first place in the Summer Split regular season. Throughout the NA LCS Summer Playoffs, they won every single one of their games and sets, first against Team Dignitas, and then the grand finals against TSM 3-0.[16] Cloud9 took home US$50,000 as well a first round bye at the Season 3 World Championship. They finished their season 3 LCS and playoffs with a 30-3 total, the highest in LCS history and with a 91% win rate.

C9 went into the Season 3 World Championship quarterfinals with a first round bye as the North American champions. Their first international match was against the top European seed, Fnatic.[17] Cloud9 lost the set 1-2, being the last North American team to be eliminated and ending up in 5th-8th place.[17]

Pre-Season 2014

On November 24, C9 competed at IEM Season VIII - Cologne. They went straight to the semifinals with a first round bye, but lost to Gambit Gaming 2–1.[18]

On October 29, the organization announced the departure of coach Alex Penn and the addition of Dan Dinh as Penn's replacement.[19]

In December 2013, Cloud9 joined four other North American LCS teams at the Battle of the Atlantic, facing European champions Fnatic for the second time. With dominating performances by mid laner Hai, Cloud9 took the series 2-0, resulting in an overall North American win at the tournament and US$10,000 for the team.

2014 Season

As a top five finisher in the Season 3 LCS Summer Split, Cloud9 earned a berth in the 2014 Season Spring Split, which began on January 17. After having trailed just behind Team SoloMid after the first week, Cloud9 finally regained first place by facing off against and defeating them during week 7. They would go undefeated afterwards (equaling their previous 13 win streak record) and finish first place for the regular Spring Season. During the eighth week of the season, Cloud9 secured a top six finish and a spot in the Spring Playoffs, which began on April 18. Cloud9 would repeat their 2013 Summer Playoff success with a 2-0 victory over Curse in the semi-finals, and a 3-0 against TSM in the grand finals on April 20.[20] Their LCS playoffs victory earned the team a spot in the 2014 All-Stars. Cloud9's LCS success had resulted in a record regular season win percentage of 87.5% (49-7) and 89.4% including playoffs (59-7).

On April 28, Hai suffered a collapsed lung, which prevented him from attending the All-Star event in Paris.[21] CLG's Link replaced him on the lineup.[22] In group stage, the team defeated OMG, Fnatic, and Taipei Assassins, but lost to SK Telecom T1 K, finishing 2nd with a 3-1 record. In the playoff semi-finals, Cloud9 lost to OMG to finish 3rd-4th in the tournament.

Cloud9's several international encounters with Fnatic in late 2013 and early 2014 has resulted in a rivalry between the two teams. Cloud9 currently has a 5-4 game record and a 1-2 series record against Fnatic, winning the Battle of the Atlantic while losing at IEM and the Season 3 World Championship.

As the winner of the previous LCS split, C9 automatically qualified for the summer split of the LCS, which began on May 23. Cloud9 faced unprecedented competition and briefly found themselves in fifth place at 10-8.[23][24] However, with an 8-2 record in the last 10 games to finish the season, the team leapfrogged struggling top competitor LMQ by holding the tiebreaker at a record of 18-10.[25] With the first-place position, Cloud9 qualified to compete at the August 2014 Season Summer Playoffs as the top seed.[26] There, Cloud9 first faced Team Curse, a team against which they held a 3-1 record, and continued this success by sweeping Curse 3-0. Advancing to the finals, Cloud9 hoped to extend its unprecedented playoff win streak of thirteen games against Team SoloMid. TSM made history by ending Cloud9's streak and winning its second LCS playoff, while C9 settled for second place and a berth in the Season 4 World Championship.

During the World Championship group stages, due to Balls and Hai excelling C9 became the first North American team to ever beat a Korean Team at the World Championship taking down NaJin Shield.[27]

Pre-Season 2015

After Worlds Cloud9 beat Alliance in a 2-1 victory and crushing Unicorns Of Love 3-0 to win IEM Season IV –Cologne, becoming the best team in two regions for the third time. For the first time C9 had dropped their first three games in the new Season of the LCS, eventually falling to an unfamiliar 10th place. Soon C9 took down second place CLG and then proceeded to defeat through TSM, Gravity, and CLG a second time in the fastest 27 minute win of the split, automatically advancing them to Semi-Finals. Like in the previous Summer Split and right on time Cloud9 rallied excelling with uncommon picks coming from behind and making their way to second place and tying with rivals TSM for first place. Balls, Meteos, and Sneaky all took top players in week 9 in their respective roles. With Sneaky taking first place overall, a familiar place for Sneaky considered to be the best and most consistent ADC in North America.[6]

2015

At IEM Katowice World Championships, C9 was beat by the GE Tigers.[28]

Cloud9 finished 2nd in the Spring LCS Regular Season with a 13–6 record.[29] Cloud9 met TSM in the finals of the LCS Spring playoffs but lost three games to one.[30] It was the fourth consecutive LCS final that featured the two teams.[30] In May, Hai officially retired from the team, citing chronic hand pain. He is transitioning into a role as chief gaming officer.[31] On March 8 Incarnati0n joined the team and replaced Hai on the starting roster.[32] July 3, 2015 Meteos steps down and Hai replaces him in the jungle.[33]

Cloud9 went into a gauntlet after beating Team 8 in a tie-breaker match, letting them go to the gauntlet on facing Team Gravity, Team Impulse and Team Liquid. They beat Team Gravity and Team Impulse by 3-2 reverse sweeps, and beat Team Liquid by 3-1. Cloud9 settled for third place going into the Season 5 World Championship but was knocked out in the group stages.

In the offseason, LemonNation retired.[34] Cloud9 announced the signings of two new players, Jungler Rush and substitute Support Bunny FuFuu. Hai changed positions once again, switching to Support.[34] Cloud 9 has stated that Hai will be playing during the beginning of NA LCS Spring Split, with the intention of teaching BunnyFuFuu, who will overtake Hai some time during Season 6.

Roster

Nationality ID Name Age Role Join date End of Contract Hometown
 United States Balls An Le 21 Top Laner Pharr, Texas
South Korea South Korea Rush Lee Yoonjae 23 Jungler
 Denmark JENSEN Nicolaj Jensen – Mid-Laner August 5, 2015 –
 United States Sneaky Zachary Scuderi 22 AD Carry January 4, 2013 Winter Springs, Florida
 United States Hai Hai Du Lam 23 Support Grandville, Michigan
 United States Bunny FuFuu Michael Kurylo - Sub/Support San Diego, California

Cloud9 Tempest

Nationality ID Name Age Role Join date End of Contract? Hometown
 United States Solo Colin Earnest Top-Laner
 United States Meteos William Hartman Jungler
 Canada Yusui David Bloomquist Mid-Lane
 Canada LOD Benjamin deMunck AD Carry
 Canada Sheep Jamie Gallagher Support

Former

Nationality ID Name Age Role Joined Left Hometown
 Canada Yusui David Bloomquist Mid-Laner 2015 2015

Counter-Strike

Cloud9 acquired CompLexity Gaming's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team in August 2014. The team left CompLexity after it received a better offer from C9 before renewing their contract with their previous team. After going 2-0 in Group D of the group stage of ESL One; Cologne 2014, Cloud9 lost to Swedish team Ninjas in Pyjamas in the quarterfinals, who later won the tournament.[35] On November 26, Sean 'seang@res' Gares took over the in-game leader position, formerly belonging to Spencer 'Hiko' Martin.[36] On December 14, Hiko left Cloud9, to be replaced by Shahzeb 'ShahZaM' Khan.[37][38][39]

On April 24, Cloud9 released Khan and Kory 'Semphis' Friesen.[40] On April 29 Ryan 'fREAKAZOiD' Abadir and Tyler 'Skadoodle' Latham, formerly of iBUYPOWER, joined the team and Braxton 'swag' Pierce joined as an analyst,[41] later changed to a CS:GO Streamer position.

On November 24, Sean "sgares" Gares[42] stepped down from the Counter-Strike roster.

Cloud9 is considered to be one of the best North American CS:GO team, finishing 2nd at multiple LAN events against top European teams, such as FNATIC at the ESEA ESL Pro League Finals.[43]

Roster

Cloud9 placed 13-16th at MLG Columbus 2016, losing to Natus Vincere and G2 Esports in the group stage.

On April 12, 2016 announced the departure of fREAKAZOiD from the starting roster. Team Liquid's Eric "adreN" Hoag was announced as a temporary stand-in.[44] Alec "Slemmy" White was announced as the official replacement on April 23, 2016.[45]

Roster

Manager

Coach

Streamer

Former

Dota 2

On February 9, 2014 Cloud9 acquired the roster of Speed Gaming, consisting of Jacky "EternaLEnVy" Mao, Weh Sing "SingSing" Yuen, Pittner "bOne7" Armand, Kurtis "Aui_2000" Ling, and Johan "pieliedie" Åström.[47]

At The International 2014, the team finished 8-7 in the group stages. In Phase Three, the team defeated LGD Gaming, but lost to Team DK, placing them in the lower bracket to start the main event. In the main event, the team defeated former TI champs Natus Vincere 2-1, but lost in the next round to eventual finalists Vici Gaming 2-1, finishing 5th-6th place and taking home over US$650,000.

On August 13, SingSing left the team,[48] and was replaced with Adrian "FATA-" Trinks four days later.[49] On January 5, 2015, Aui_2000 and pieliedie were replaced by Johan "BigDaddyN0tail" Sundstein and Rasmus "MiSeRy" Filipsen.[50]

In May 2015, Valve Corporation announced that Cloud9 was one of 10 teams to receive a direct invitation to The International 2015.[51]

After a 9th-12th-place finish at The International 2015, the team was dropped on August 14.[52] On September 1, Theeban "1437" Siva announced on his Facebook page that his team was acquired by Cloud9.[53]

Following the International 2015, on November 16, Ritsu was dismissed from the DotA 2 player roster.[54] No replacement has been found as of yet.

On November 27, the team announced their second disband.[55]

Roster

Former members

Other teams

Hearthstone

Super Smash Bros. Melee

Heroes of the Storm

Former


Call of Duty: Black Ops III

Cloud9

Cloud9 Eclipse

World of Warcraft

Overwatch

Management

Nationality ID Name Role
 United States Jack Jack Etienne Owner/Founder
 United States Kannigit Danan Flander General Manager
 United States Bubbadub Royce Newcomb Coach
 United States Hai Hai Lam Chief Gaming Officer

References

  1. ↑ "Teams". Cloud9. Retrieved 2016-03-28.
  2. ↑ "Bracket - LoL Esports".
  3. ↑ Callum, Leslie (November 7, 2015). "Cloud9 are the first ever Heroes of the Storm world champions". The Daily Dot. The Daily Dot. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Cloud9". LoL Esports. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  5. ↑ Howell O'Neill, Patrick (December 31, 2013). "After owner's mysterious disappearance, an eSports team collapses". The Daily Dot.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Shields, Duncan 'Thorin' (April 28, 2014). "The history and formation of Cloud 9 - Part 1 of the Cloud 9 story". OnGamers. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 22, 2015.
  7. ↑ Goldberg, Harold (October 21, 2014). "Winners, losers, and Legends". Playboy (Playboy Enterprises).
  8. ↑ Lingle, Samuel (June 30, 2014). "Cloud9 'Smite' team disbands on eve of pro league". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  9. ↑ Breslau, Rob "slasher" (May 6, 2014). "Smash Bros star Mango joins Cloud 9". Retrieved April 22, 2015.
  10. ↑ Lewis, Richard (July 30, 2015). "Cloud9 set to acquire CompLexity's 'CS:GO' team". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 22, 2015.
  11. ↑ Turton, William (November 25, 2014). "Cloud9 begin open tryouts for challenger team". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  12. ↑ Lingel, Samuel (November 26, 2014). "Halo Pro Team "The Agency" Joins C9 as Cloud9 Halo". Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  13. ↑ Barker, Ian J. (December 18, 2014). "Cloud9 withdraws from I-League, gets banned". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Cloud9". Retrieved April 22, 2015.
  15. ↑ Ho, Jack “NeoIllusions” (May 10, 2013). "Cloud 9 vs Team Astral Poke". Cloud 9 vs Team Astral Poke. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Is Cloud9 set for another title run?". The Daily Dot.
  17. 1 2 "Cloud 9 vs Fnatic LoL - LoL - Season 3 World Championship". GosuGamers. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  18. ↑ NyxRose, Emily (November 26, 2013). "Gambit Gaming wins IEM Cologne". LoL Esports. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  19. ↑ Dan Dinh to coach Cloud9 na.lolesports.com
  20. ↑ Waxman, Jeremy (April 20, 2014). "Cloud 9 Dominates 2014 Spring Playoffs, Repeats as NA LCS Champions". esportsMax. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  21. ↑ Mitchell, Ferguson (April 30, 2015). "'League of Legends' star plays with a collapsed lung from hospital bed". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  22. ↑ Mose, Kelsey "Prehistorique" (April 28, 2014). "Hai cannot attend AllStars due to a collapsed lung". GosuGamers. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  23. ↑ Lingle, Samuel (July 25, 2014). "Dignitas tries to save sinking ship against Cloud9". The Daily Dot. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  24. ↑ Lingle, Sam (June 16, 2015). "Team SoloMid bests Cloud9 in undefeated week". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  25. ↑ Mitchell, Ferguson (June 7, 2014). "Cloud9 versus CLG: Who will win?". The Daily Dot. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  26. ↑ Barker, Ian J. (August 29, 2014). "Cloud9 begin title defense against Curse: What the stats tell us". The Daily Dot. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  27. ↑ Yordanov, Daniel 'd1dx' (October 4, 2014). "The top 10 games from the group stages of the Season 4 World Championship". OnGamers. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  28. ↑ Lingle, Samuel (April 29, 2015). "Hai on wrist injury, IEM failure, and why he's still on cloud nine". The Daily Dot. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  29. ↑ "Cloud9". LoL Esports. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  30. 1 2 Lingle, Samuel (April 20, 2015). "After another NA LCS title, TSM will aim for international glory". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  31. ↑ Gafford, Gafford (April 29, 2015). "Cloud 9's Hai Steps Down From Mid Lane: Retires". GameSpot. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  32. ↑ Kulasingham, Nilu (May 8, 2015). "Cloud 9 Chooses Incarnation". Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  33. ↑ "Meteos Stepping Down". Cloud9.
  34. 1 2 "theScore eSports". www.thescoreesports.com. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
  35. ↑ Saedler, Philipp (August 16, 2014). "Ninjas in Pyjamas vs. Cloud 9: a record-breaking series". Electronic Sports League. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  36. ↑ n0thing: "[sgares] is calling again" (Interview), hltv.org
  37. ↑ Cloud9 Welcomes Shahzam, cloud9.gg
  38. ↑ Cloud9 add ShahZaM; Hiko out, hltv.org
  39. ↑ Cloud9 Signs ShahZaM, Hiko Steps Back, news.esea.net
  40. ↑ Cloud9 release ShahZaM, SEMPHIS, hltv.org
  41. ↑ Saranthus, Tres (April 29, 2015). "Cloud9 CS:GO Welcomes: Skadoodle, Freakazoid, & Swag!". Cloud9. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  42. ↑ sgares steps down from Cloud9, hltv.org
  43. ↑ {{http://www.hltv.org/news/15368-fnatic-vs-cloud9-grand-final-preview}}
  44. ↑ Saranthus, Tres. "fREAKAZOiD Departs Starting CS:GO Roster". cloud9.gg. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  45. ↑ Saranthus, Tres. "Cloud9 CS:GO Welcomes Slemmy". cloud9.gg. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  46. ↑ "CS:GO —— Cloud9". cloud9.gg. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  47. ↑ DotA 2 has arrived, cloud9.gg
  48. ↑ Farewell to SingSing cloud9.gg
  49. ↑ Cloud9 HyperX Adds FATA to DOTA 2 Roster cloud9.gg
  50. ↑ "Cloud 9's new roster on fire in DAC!". Retrieved May 12, 2015.
  51. ↑ QUAN, TIN LIÊN (May 8, 2015). "Valve Discloses Invited Teams for The International 2015". iGosu. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  52. ↑ "Cloud9 officially disbands". Retrieved September 3, 2015.
  53. ↑ https://www.facebook.com/notes/1437/time-for-a-new-chapter/874323929282971. Retrieved September 3, 2015. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  54. ↑ "Ritsu Dismissed From Cloud9 DOTA2 Roster". Cloud9. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  55. ↑ "C9 DOTA2 Disbands as 1437 Moves to Digital Chaos". Cloud9. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  56. ↑ "Call of Duty — Cloud9". cloud9.gg. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  57. ↑ "COD Eclipse — Cloud9". cloud9.gg. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  58. ↑ "World Of Warcraft — Cloud9". cloud9.gg. Retrieved 5 February 2016.

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Team SoloMid		 North American League of Legends Championship Series winner
Summer 2013–Spring 2014 		Succeeded by
Team SoloMid
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