Sources: Perkz, Jankos, Lider, Jackspektra, Nash, IWD, YamatoCannon in process to partner with Ruddy Esports in NLC

Following the announcement of Marc “Caedrel” Lamont's team, another team decided to spice up the offseason by assembling a roster of former LEC stars. According to Sheep Esports sources, Ruddy Esports are in the process of joining forces with Christian “IWillDominate” Rivera and Jakob “YamatoCannon” Mebdi in the NLC. Should everything close out smoothly, the team plans to field a powerful roster featuring some of Europe's greatest legends: Lucas “Perkz” Perković, Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski, Adam “LIDER” Ilyasov, Jakob “Jackspektra” Kepple, and Alf-Kristian "Nash" Sund.

Despite assembling a highly competitive roster for the NLC on paper, the team's primary focus will be on streaming and content creation. This approach aligns with Jackspektra’s October announcement of his retirement to prioritize content, in which he cited a lack of passion for traditional competition (and likely limited opportunities in the LEC). Unlike conventional professional teams, which leave little room for side pursuits, this project offers players the flexibility to juggle other endeavors alongside occasional scrims and official matches.

On Monday, Riot Games revealed a new rule permitting ERL teams and players to stream their in-game perspectives. This change, largely influenced by Caedrel's team, Los Ratones, opens the door for projects like this to blend competitive play with a strong focus on content.

In a surprising twist, Perkz is set to play top — the third role he's played competitively. While Martin "Wunder" Hansen was initially the team’s top choice for the position, he ultimately declined the offer. However, Perkz wasn't a fallback option — he was part of the roster plans from the start but chose to roleswap to top when the opportunity arose after Wunder’s decision.

This proposed roster brings together numerous threads from recent LEC history. Perkz and Jankos, once pillars of the legendary 2019/2020 G2 Esports lineup, went their separate ways before briefly reuniting in 2024 under Team Heretics. Jankos had joined Heretics a year earlier, spending two splits alongside Jackspektra during the 2023 season in EMEA’s top league. However, the Perkz-Jankos reunion didn’t live up to expectations; Perkz lost his spot on the roster after just one split.

Jankos had conversations with several LEC teams in the offseason, but the last team seriously interested, Rogue, couldn't make him an offer. However, as he has confirmed on stream, Jankos chose to wait for a better LEC offer in the future — the greatest jungler in European history still intends to compete at the highest level.

Notably, Perkz and Jankos have never competed in the ERL circuit — both players won LEC titles before the ERLs even existed.

Jackspektra, widely regarded as one of the best AD Carries in the ERL circuit, rose to prominence after winning EU Masters in Summer 2022 with Heretics. Most recently, he enjoyed a stellar year in the Superliga with Heretics’ academy team, securing victories in both splits of the 2024 season.

LIDER, meanwhile, has an also history in the LEC, first with Vitality then Astralis. He is the only one of the four former LEC players who hasn’t previously played alongside any of his new teammates. After Astralis sold their LEC slot to Karmine Corp, LIDER found himself teamless and sat out of the 2024 season despite excelling in SoloQ. For LIDER, like his three well-known teammates, this move to Ruddy Esports represents a fresh start — one that fans are sure to follow closely.

Less well known than the rest of the roster, Nash is the only player who has previously competed for Ruddy Esports — back in Spring 2023, when the team finished 4th in the league. This time, his ambitions appear to be significantly higher.