The retired lifestyle doesn’t appeal to some professional League of Legends players. Although they could appreciate the laid-back atmosphere of other activities, the urge of competitiveness will eventually beckon them back to the stage. The “competitive itch” is exactly what led North American superstar Doublelift to join 100 Thieves this past offseason.
In a quick video, Doublelift explained that after TSM’s tragic run at the 2020 World Championship, the organization was ready to revamp the roster around him and recently departed jungler Spica. Doublelift was also set on continuing his playing career, and when the team began negotiations with veteran support Hu “SwordArt” Shuo-Chieh, his excitement for 2021 rose to new heights.
When the management wasn’t able to lock SwordArt as the team’s new support, Doublelift wanted to explore his options on the free agency market. TSM’s co-owner Andy “Reginald” Dinh “took offense” with the lack of commitment and chose to promote Academy AD carry Lost instead of keeping Doublelift. The only choices for the star marksman at this point were to join a weaker LCS org or pursue full-time streaming.
“I really loved streaming,” Doublelift said. “I had so much passion for it in the first year… It’s probably an open secret at this point [that] streaming makes multiple times more money than playing pro, and you have to put half as much time.”
In his second year, Doublelift started to attend live League events for co-streaming purposes, and although they were really fun, they also brought back the competitive flames within his heart. Deciding to return to pro play for 2023, Doublelift still had worries about his level of play, especially after taking two years away.
He reached out to all 10 LCS teams to gauge interest in him, and to his surprise, he got several offers for his services. With so many teams looking to sign him, his self-confidence returned and he chose 100 Thieves as his new home due to the team’s supreme branding, top-tier staff, transparent LCS operations, and the powerful roster.
“[Taking a break] for anything, for anybody, is going to make you worse at whatever you do,” He said with a laugh. “I do fully believe that I’m going to get back into form at some point. It’s going to take me some time. It might take me a few months, it might even take me half a split, or the whole split. I do think that I’m going to get back to form, and be the best at my position again.”