If there is one team that cemented its legacy as one of the best teams in VALORANT, it is none other than LOUD. The Brazilian team had one of the best rosters in the world during 2022, having won the VALORANT Champions that year. Things have not been the best for the team, which finished 4th during VCT Masters Madrid this year. Following their match with 100 Thieves, there have been reports that their controller, Felipe “Less” de Loyola, will be benched for the upcoming season. In this article, let’s dive deep into the reasons for this.
Less is being benched by LOUD
Image Credits: Riot Games
In the report by @Noynvlr, it has been stated that the reasons are due to finances and not performance based.
There are certain bits to note here. In 2023, it was reported that the minimum player salary in the VCT Americas league was around $50,000 per annum. In a tweet four months after the report, Rushindra Sinha, the Founder of VCT Pacific team Global Esports in a tweet stated that players in NA could earn up to $35,000 to $40,000 per month. This would result in the players earning a potential $420,000 per annum.
Less is widely considered one of the world’s best players, and his salary could be similar to the amount stated by Sinha. It’s reported that Rafael “Rafa” Lima from the Brazilian team Hero Base could be joining the LOUD roster. If so, one must speculate that his salary could be closer to the minimum $50,000 per annum threshold.
In their previous match, LOUD lost to 100 Thieves during the VCT Americas Stage One Playoffs. This could potentially be the last match we see Less playing for LOUD. With this loss, LOUD will not be able to qualify for the VCT Masters Shanghai. Only time will tell if they will be eligible for the VALORANT Champions 2024 Seoul.
Is the decision to bench Less solely motivated due to financial reasons?
Image Credits: LOUD
Less is the primary controller for LOUD within their current roster. Having played Viper around 35 times already in the last 90 days, the player has been a Viper main this entire season. He joined LOUD in February 2022. Going through his accomplishments shows his incredible talent. Below is a list of all his accolades with LOUD from 2022:
- 2nd in VCT Master Rejkjav 2022
- 1st in VALORANT Champions 2022
- 2nd in VCT LOCK//IN Sau Paulo 2023
- 1st in VCT Americas League 2023
- 3rd in VCT Champions LA 2023
The above accomplishments show Less’s incredible consistency since 2022. If we look at some of his stats for the last 30 days, he has a kills-to-death ratio of 1.15:1 and an average damage per round of 134. This shows that the main reason the player was reported benched is definitely not his performance.
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