VIrtus.pro has decided to opt out of IEM Oakland because of “an intense and stressful travel schedule.” The Polish powerhouse wants rest to recover from the amount of events taking placing in the past and coming weeks. Their statement on the situation can be found here:
.@heroicgg to replace @TeamVirtuspro at #IEM Oakland. Find the details here: https://t.co/qeaOHe0B9p pic.twitter.com/5wAS5hLFTV
— Intel®ExtremeMasters (@IEM) November 8, 2016
Heroic, a Danish team, will be their replacement at the Bay Area event. The roster of Michael ‘Friis’ Jørgensen, Andreas ‘MODDII’ Fridh, Valdemar ‘valde’ Bjørn Vangså, Marco ‘Snappi’ Pfeiffer, and Nikolaj ‘niko’ Kristensen will take the place of the Poles in Group B. In my opinion, Heroic may not be able to hold their own in Oakland with the amount of high-level competition still remaining in Group B.
With Virtus.pro unable to attend, the playing field for the event will be easier for teams like Natus Vincere and SK Gaming to win IEM Oakland. IEM Oakland will take place from November 16th to November 20th. The teams that will be attending IEM Oakland and their respective groups are as follows:
Group A
- Team Liquid
- Natus Vincere
- Astralis
- G2 Esports
Group B
- SK Gaming
- Ninjas in Pyjamas
- mousesports
- Heroic
Do you think Heoric can hold their own in Group B? Let us know in the comments below or by tweeting us @GAMURScom.
