Gen.G Esports ( ko, 젠지), previously known as KSV Esports, is a professional
esports
Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...
organization with headquarters in
Santa Monica
Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...
,
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
, and
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
. According to
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
, Gen.G is the sixth most valuable esports organization in the world as of December 2020, worth
US$
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
185 million.
History
Gen.G Esports was formed in 2017 as
KSV eSports by Kevin Chou and Kent Wakeford, co-founders of the video game development company
Kabam
Kabam (formerly Watercooler, Inc.) is an interactive entertainment company founded in 2006 and headquartered in Vancouver, BC. with offices in Montréal, QC, San Francisco, CA and Austin, Texas.
The company creates, develops and publishes massive ...
. The organization started out by acquiring the rights for an
Overwatch League
The Overwatch League (OWL) is a professional esports league for the video game ''Overwatch'', produced by its developer, Blizzard Entertainment. The Overwatch League follows the model of other traditional North American professional sporting lea ...
franchise in Seoul, South Korea. The purchase reportedly amounted to $20 million with the intention to hire both an all-Korean roster as well as an all-Korean management staff.
This team would later be known as the
Seoul Dynasty
Seoul Dynasty is a South Korean professional ''Overwatch'' esports team based in Seoul, South Korea. The Dynasty compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's East region. Founded in 2017, Seoul Dynasty is one of the league' ...
. On May 3, 2018, KSV eSports announced a rebranding to Gen.G.
On January 20, 2020, Gen.G was unveiled to be behind an
NBA 2K League
The NBA 2K League (NBA2KL or simply 2K League) is an esports league joint venture between the National Basketball Association and Take-Two Interactive. The league was announced on February 9, 2017. On May 4, 2017, it was revealed that 17 of the ...
franchise called the "Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai", the first franchise to not be affiliated with an NBA team, and the first franchise outside of North America. Along with the announcement, Gen.G announced that itself and the NBA 2K League were working together in a "long-term strategic relationship".
On August 27, 2020, Gen.G was announced as one of the 10 selected teams as part of
League of Legends Champions Korea
''League of Legends'' Champions Korea (LCK) is the primary competition for ''League of Legends'' esports in South Korea. Contested by ten teams, the league runs two seasons per year and serves as a direct route to qualification for the annual ...
(LCK) franchising.
Current divisions
''League of Legends''
The KSV ''League of Legends'' team was formed on November 30, 2017, with the acquisition of
Samsung
The Samsung Group (or simply Samsung) ( ko, 삼성 ) is a South Korean multinational manufacturing conglomerate headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea. It comprises numerous affiliated businesses, most of them united under the ...
's esports division, which included the 2017 World Champions
Samsung Galaxy
Samsung Galaxy (, stylised as SΛMSUNG Galaxy since 2015 (except Japan where it omits the Samsung branding), previously stylised as Samsung GALAXY; abbreviated as SG) is a series of computing and mobile computing devices that are designed, ...
roster.
The team, now named Gen.G Esports, would qualify for the
2018 League of Legends World Championship
The 2018 ''League of Legends'' World Championship was an esports tournament for the multiplayer online battle arena video game ''League of Legends''. It was the eighth iteration of the ''League of Legends'' World Championship, an annual interna ...
, but would end up being knocked out promptly in the group stage, with a 1–5 record, in a year with a particularly bad showing from the South Korean teams.
Due to missing out on the
2019 World Championship, the team's next appearance on the world stage would be at the
2020 World Championship. Gen.G would make it to the quarterfinals of the 2020 World Championship before being eliminated by
G2 Esports
G2 Esports (G2) is a European esports organization headquartered in Berlin, Germany, with players competing in ''League of Legends'', ''Valorant'', '' Counter-Strike: Global Offensive'', '' Hearthstone'', ''Rocket League'', ''Rainbow Six Siege ...
. Gen.G made it to the semifinals of the
2021 World Championship, but they were eliminated by
Edward Gaming, which went on to become that year's world champions.
During the
2022 LCK Summer Split, Gen.G won their first LCK championship, defeating
T1 in the final 3-0 to qualify as the first seed for the
2022 World Championship. At Worlds, Gen.G grouped up against
100 Thieves
100 Thieves, LLC is an American lifestyle brand and gaming organization based in Los Angeles, California, founded in 2017 by Matthew "Nadeshot" Haag and Dan Gilbert. The organization competes in several video games, including ''Apex Legends'', ...
,
CTBC Flying Oyster
CTBC Flying Oyster (CFO) is a Taiwanese professional ''League of Legends'' team competing in the Pacific Championship Series (PCS), the top-level league for the game in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, and Southeast Asia. It is owned by CTBC Sports En ...
, and
Royal Never Give Up
Royal Never Give Up (RNG) is a Chinese esports organization whose ''League of Legends'' team competes in the League of Legends Pro League. It was established in May 2015. RNG won the 2016 LPL Spring Playoffs, 2018 LPL Spring Playoffs and 2018 L ...
. After finishing first, they were placed against the 3rd Korean seed
DWG KIA
DWG KIA, commonly referred to as DAMWON KIA ( ko, 담원 기아) and formerly known as DAMWON Gaming ( abbr. DWG; ko, 담원 게이밍, links=no), is a South Korean professional esports organization. Its ''League of Legends'' team competes in ...
in the quarter finals, who they beat in a 3-2 series. In the semi-finals, Gen.G faced
DRX, the 4th seeded team from Korea and lost the series 1–3.
Roster
=Challengers
=
''NBA 2K''
On September 26, 2019, the NBA 2K League today announced that Gen.G Esports would launch an NBA 2K League team from Shanghai that will join the other 22 NBA 2K League teams for the 2020 season. Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai was the first NBA 2K League team outside of North America.
''Overwatch''
Gen.G Esports' start came with the acquisition of an
Overwatch League
The Overwatch League (OWL) is a professional esports league for the video game ''Overwatch'', produced by its developer, Blizzard Entertainment. The Overwatch League follows the model of other traditional North American professional sporting lea ...
franchise spot, naming the team the
Seoul Dynasty
Seoul Dynasty is a South Korean professional ''Overwatch'' esports team based in Seoul, South Korea. The Dynasty compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's East region. Founded in 2017, Seoul Dynasty is one of the league' ...
.
In the leadup to this announcement, KSV eSports acquired the roster of Lunatic-Hai, on August 21, 2017.
Roster
''PUBG: Battlegrounds''
On November 7, 2017, KSV announced its entrance into the PUBG scene, with the team KSV Asel.
Just a few weeks later, on December 7, 2017, KSV added a second team for PUBG, KSV Notitle aka KSV NTT.
On August 16, 2018, Gen.G announced the merging of the two teams.
The resulting team has proved very successful over the years, winning the first PUBG World Championship - PUBG Global Invitational 2018, the 2019 Global Championship, and placing third at the 2021 PUBG Global Invitational.
Roster
''Rocket League''
On September 28th 2022, Gen.G Mobil1 Racing was formed as a result of a partnership between
Gen.G Esports and
Mobil 1
Mobil 1 is a brand of synthetic motor oil and other automotive lubrication products. Originally developed by the Mobil oil company, it is now globally marketed and sold by ExxonMobil.
Mobil 1 engine oil was introduced in 1974. The brand range no ...
.
ApparentlyJack, Chronic and noly joined the starting roster, with Pollo as substitute. Allushin joined as coach on the 30th.
Roster
''Valorant''
On May 4 entered ''Valorant'' with the acquisition of FRENCH CANADIANS.
Gen.G would win the first major North American VALORANT, T1 x Nerd Street Gamers Invitational.
Gen.G would go on to win an additional 3 tournaments in 2020 - Pittsburgh Knights Tournament Series, Pulse Invitational, and Pittsburgh Knights Before Christmas. After the announcement of the Valorant Franchisement League, Gen.G has decided to base its roster in Korea.
Roster
Former division
''Heroes of the Storm''
On October 24, 2017, it was announced that KSV acquired the rosters of two South Korean Heroes of the Storm (HOTS) teams - MVP Black and MVP Miracle.
On November 28, KSV announced it had to drop the now KSV Miracle roster, due to restrictions from Blizzard.
KSV Black/Gen.G roster would go on to win 3 Global Championships (2017 HOTS Global Championship, 2018 HOTS Global Championship Mid-Season Brawl, 2018 HOTS Global Championship) before Blizzard ended HOTS esports in December 2018.
''Clash Royale''
On February 26, 2018, Gen.G announce the founding of the Clash Royale division in the Clash Royale League China with Cheshen, D.King, XiaoK, Little Chen and Winds.
Gen.G Esports withdrew from the Clash Royale League on November 4, 2019.
''Fortnite''
On October 25, 2018, Gen.G entered Fortnite by signing an all-female Fortnite team, TINARAES, and maddiesuun.
In August 2019, Gen.G partnered with dating app
Bumble
Bumble is an online dating application. Profiles of potential matches are displayed to users, who can "swipe left" to reject a candidate or "swipe right" to indicate interest. In heterosexual matches, only female users can make the first contac ...
to create an all-female ''Fortnite'' team known as "Gen.G Team Bumble".
TINARAES would become the first female Fortnite player to win a major competitive Fortnite even in 'Twitch Rivals: TwitchCon Fortnite Showdown' with Rhux and Pika.
Gen.G would also sign 14 years old, Moqii, who would become the first female Fortnite pro to win a major Epic hosted solo Fortnite event 'European Fortnite Champion Series (FNCS) qualifier'.
''Call of Duty: Black Ops 4''
On January 31, 2019, Gen.G Esports enter Call of Duty with the signing of Team Space featuring Spacely, Maux, MajorManiak, Nagafen, Havok, and Nubzy as coach.
Gen.G would also bring on Envoy before CWL Fort Worth 2019.
Gen.G would finish CWL Anaheim 2019 in 2nd place
and finish
2019 CWL Pro League in 2nd place.
Gen.G would then be eliminated in last place in the
Call of Duty Championship 2019
The Call of Duty World League Championship 2019 was a '' Call of Duty: Black Ops 4'' tournament on PlayStation 4 which took place from August 14–18, 2019. The tournament was won by the team consisting of Alec "Arcitys" Sanderson, Preston "Prest ...
.
Shortly after the CWL Championship 2019 Gen.G released all of their players since Gen.G would not be participating in the new
Call of Duty League
The Call of Duty League (CDL) is a professional esports league for the video game series '' Call of Duty'', produced by its publisher Activision. The Call of Duty League follows the model of the Overwatch League as well as other traditional N ...
.
''Apex Legends''
On March 1, 2019, Gen.G Esports entered the Competitive
Apex Legends
''Apex Legends'' is a free-to-play Battle royale game, battle royale-hero shooter game developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in February 2019, for Nintendo ...
by signing GrimReality, dummy, and silkthread.
On November 19, 2019, Gen.G released its Apex Legends roster due to poor performance.
''Counter-Strike: Global Offensive''
On December 6, 2019, Gen.G signed the former core of
Cloud9
Cloud9 Esports, Inc., or simply Cloud9 (C9), is an American professional esports company based in Santa Monica, California. The company was originally founded as a professional ''League of Legends'' team by Jack and Paullie Etienne in May 2013 ...
along with the team's assistant coach.
Boston Major
The Boston Major was a professional ''Dota 2'' esports tournament that took place in Boston in the United States. The main event was played live at the Wang Theatre from December 7–10, 2016. Like other tournaments in the ''Dota 2'' Major Champio ...
winner, Timothy "autimatic" Ta was signed, along with Kenneth "koosta" Suen, Damian "daps" Steele, and Chris "Elmapuddy" Tebbit as head coach. Three days later, Gen.G signed Sam "s0m" Oh after he was released from
Team Envy
Team Envy was an American esports franchise based in Dallas, Texas, owned by Envy Gaming. Founded in 2007 as a professional ''Call of Duty'' team under the moniker Team EnVyUs, they fielded rosters in ''Counter-Strike, FIFA (video game series), ...
.
Hunter "SicK" Mims was also announced as a stand-in for the IEM Katowice 2020 qualifiers until the final slot was filled. On December 22, Gen.G announced the signing Hansel "BnTeT" Ferdinand from top Chinese team
TyLoo to finalize the roster.
Gen.G won the only in-person LAN in 2020 (due to COVID-19 pandemic), DreamHack Open Anaheim 2020, without dropping a map and currently remaining undefeated on LAN.
Gen.G would also win 2020 ESL One: Road to Rio - North America.
The roster was subsequently disbanded in February 2021, when its last member, Timothy "autimatic" Ta, was acquired by T1 in VALORANT.
Championships
References
{{Seoul Dynasty
League of Legends Champions Korea teams
Overwatch League academy teams
Call of Duty teams
Heroes of the Storm teams
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds teams
Esports teams based in South Korea
Esports teams based in Los Angeles
Esports teams based in China
Esports teams established in 2017
Seoul Dynasty
Valorant teams