According to an announcement on Weibo.com, the Chinese organization has officially purchased the LPL spot of Suning. The news confirms speculation from last month that saw the logo of Suning's office changed to Weibo.com. The announcement comes with a picture of the new roster, with the words "born to win" emblazoned on.
The news comes after a disappointing year for the LPL team. Previously competing in the LSPL, in 2017 they qualified to compete in the 2017 LPL Summer Season. Throughout the end of 2020 into 2021, the organization has failed to place higher than fifth in any tournament. In LPL 2021 Spring, they exited 1-3 in the playoffs, while placing 9-10th on the summer playoffs. News on the future whereabout's of Suning's roster have not been released.
The news marks a milestone in Chinese esports. A microblogging platform (considered to be the Chinese version to Reddit), Weibo.com is one of the largest websites in the world, with a reported 523 million monthly active users last year. In 2018, the company surpassed $30 billion market valuation mark. The announcement states that Weibo will continue to improve the layout of the esports industry, and has immediate plans to qualify for Worlds. The team will compete as Weibo Gaming.
Suning has been a figure in the Chinese League of Legends scene since 2016. Notable players to compete with them include Lê "SofM" Quang Duy and Hu "SwordArt" Shuo-Chieh. Notable accomplishments include winning the LPL 2020 Regional Finals, and making it to the finals of the 2020 League of Legends World Championship, later losing to DAMWON GAMING. Prior to the move, the organization's parent company reportedly suffered from financial troubles that did not allow them to continue to compete.
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