Year in review: Shock roster moves for VP
We're coming to the end of 2024 now, so we thought it would be a good idea to turn back the clock and look back on the years of all the BLAST Premier teams.
Next up is Virtus.pro, the team that shocked us twice in 2024 with incredible roster moves.
It's been a difficult year for them, which is probably why they made such surprising moves, so let's take a look back.
The first season
Virtus.pro started their year well, becoming one of the first teams to qualify for BLAST Premier Spring Final after finishing first in a group containing HEROIC, BIG, and Cloud9.
However, their year took a poor turn immediately after, they failed to advance from the Play-in stage at IEM Katowice.
A roller coaster opening, they followed that disappointment by qualifying for the PGL Major Copenhagen with a 3-0 record, taking down eventual Major champions NAVI in their 2-0 game.
The Major itself ended with disappointment, they failed to secure a playoff berth in their 2-2 game as they lost 2-1 to G2.
Photo: Michal KonkolA loss that would spark their first surprising move of the year, not long after NAVI lifted the trophy, it was announced that mir was benched and that electroNic would be joining Virtus.pro from Cloud9.
A move that instantly seemed to have a positive effect, electroNic's arrival was followed by three consecutive quarter-final finishes. The first came at his debut tournament, IEM Chengdu, and this was followed by ESL Pro League Season 19 and BetBoom Dacha Belgrade #1.
There was a brief break in the playoff spree at IEM Dallas, where the team exited in 9th-12th, and that led them to drop dastan, the coach who had been with them since the AVANGAR days.
The final tournament for VP in the first half of the year was Spring Final, which, alongside their first tournament of the second season, is tied as their best placing all year. They finished in the top four, but were beaten 2-0 in the semi-finals by NAVI.
Photo Michal KonkolThe second season
So, how about their first tournament of season two? For that, we have to head to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and the Esports World Cup. Eliminated in the semi-finals once again, that time, it was a 2-0 loss to G2.
That exit marked a downturn in VP's form. Followed immediately after by last-place exits from BLAST Premier Fall Groups and IEM Cologne, questions were beginning to be asked about the longevity of a team that includes both Jame and electroNic. But more on that later.
Despite the downturn, VP still managed a few playoff appearances. The first came out BetBoom Dacha Belgrade #2, and the second was at ESL Pro League Season 20, albeit with a worse finish than in Season 19.
Although VP were still holding on to a relatively high ranking, the dip was obvious. A quarter-final finish at IEM Rio didn't change that, and the loss to OG at the Thunderpick World Championship only reinforced to viewpoint.
Photo: Michal KonkolWith the Perfect World Shanghai Major right around the corner, doubts were cast as to whether VP would even manage to qualify from their RMR.
They did, with a 3-1 record, but the Major itself will go down as a catastrophic failure.
Eliminated from the Opening Stage with a 1-3 record, VP's only win in Shanghai came against Rare Atom, and they suffered losses against MIBR, BIG, and NA underdogs Wildcard.
Something big needed to change, and it wasn't long before it was announced that Jame, long-standing captain and the only member of the original AVANGAR team remaining, was to be benched.
A surprising move, it's raised plenty of questions about VP heading into 2025. No one knows what to expect from them anymore, but with some of the prospects coming out of their scene, they could build one of the scariest rosters in CS.