After a heap of financial issues beset his former team, one of Europe’s best Challenger junglers will return to North America in the hopes to qualify for the League Championship Series (LCS).
Team Huma and former Team SoloMid jungler Lucas “Santorin” Tao Kilmer Larsen will join North American Challenger squad Ember in the coming weeks, sources close to the player tell the Daily Dot. His Huma contract was bought out by Ember’s parent corporation Team Elemental, Inc. earlier this week.
Larsen will replace current Ember jungler Juan “Contractz” Garcia, who will be ineligible to compete if the team makes it to the promotion tournament due to being underage. For a chance to play in the LCS, each member of a team must be 17 years of age before their first split. Unfortunately for Garcia, he won’t be 17 until later in the year.
What’s next for Garcia is uncertain, but Ember recently made an announcement regarding what it calls “Ember Academy,” which presumably will be another Challenger team—built around Garcia—should the main squad qualify for the LCS in a few weeks.
Larsen’s replacement on Huma is likely to be Renegades: Banditos jungler Matthew “Impaler” Taylor, who is currently being negotiated for between the two teams, sources close to both teams tell the Daily Dot. Huma owner Behdad Jaafarian may also bench top laner Jorge “Werlyb” Casanovas in favor of Banditos top laner Barney “Alphari” Morris.
Larsen left Team SoloMid this offseason, and was set to join LCS newcomer Immortals for the 2016 season. However due to the former Fnatic Korean duo—jungler Kim “Reignover” Yeu-jin and top laner Heo “Huni” Seung-hoon—becoming free agents that deal was canceled, and Larsen joined Team Huma.
But now Huma has entered a bind of financial issues as it’s allegedly unable to afford hotels for playoffs in Berlin, visa fees for its foreign players, and its entire support staff. Those issues led to turmoil between the ownership on one side, and the management and players on the other.
Jaafarian has now released manager Karl “Dentist” Krey, head coach Kublai “Kubz” Barlas, and head analyst Jonathon “Kamikazplatypus” McDaniel.
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As for Huma’s future, it depends on an ongoing Riot Games investigation. That could bid well for the disgruntled players or do absolutely nothing, making the players live up to their contracts.
Ember declined to comment on this story.
Update 3:10pm CT, Feb. 27: Ember has announced that Larsen is officially joining the squad. In addition, the team indirectly confirmed that Larsen had a previous deal with Immortals that ultimately did not go through.
