Sources - VALORANT: Team Liquid set to open an academy in the VCL North//East

According to Sheep Esports sources, Team Liquid are set to launch their academy in the regional VCL network: the VCT EMEA organization will establish a secondary roster to compete in VCL North//East, the newly formed league created from the merger of VCL North: Polaris and VCL East: Surge. Team Liquid will be among the invited teams representing the North region, meaning they will not need to go through the Qualifiers to participate in the three Stages.

Until now, Team Liquid had not competed in Tier 2 of European VALORANT. Back in 2021, the team participated in the debut of the VCT EMEA, winning the Stage 2 Challengers Finals. That same year, the Dutch organization qualified for both Masters Reykjavik and Champions. After a less successful 2022, Liquid surprised everyone at VCT EMEA 2023 by handing Fnatic their only defeat of the season in the Grand Final.

In 2024, Team Liquid made their first foray into Tier 2 by recruiting three players from Apeks to build their roster, two of whom had prior VCT experience : Enzo "Enzo" Mestari, Georgio "Keiko" Sanassy and James "Mistic" Orfila. However, the gamble did not pay off, as Liquid were eliminated in the first round of the Stage 1 playoffs and failed to qualify for the Stage 2 playoffs altogether.

During the year, Liquid and Apeks deepened their relationship by announcing an affiliation in June, before Stage 2. This agreement allowed Apeks players to compete for Liquid in VCT EMEA. Dom “soulcas” Sulcas, who had moved to Apeks after winning the VCT EMEA 2023 with Liquid, was registered as a substitute for TL during Stage 2. However, he did not end up playing for Liquid in 2024.

Apeks has been the dominant force in Tier 2 over the past two years, finishing as a finalist in Ascension 2023 and securing promotion to VCT EMEA by winning the 2024 edition. As a result, the affiliation between the two organizations could not continue. Apeks therefore vacated their slot in the league they had won for four consecutive splits: the VCL North... which Liquid's academy will now join.

Looking ahead, Team Liquid aim to develop their own talent pool and potentially promote players to the regional elite, much like LEC teams have done for years in League of Legends.