Marc “Caedrel” Lamont confirmed in a new video that the Los Ratones team will be shutting down, closing out a project that began as an experiment of bringing streamers and former top-tier pro players together into a competitive setting, and ended up almost making it into the LEC playoffs.
Caedrel stated that the decision was effectively locked regardless of how the final week played out, and that the group that started the team was always going to be the group ending it.
The announcement follows Los Ratones’ ninth-place finish in the LEC Versus split, a result that was a brutal swing after the team had built momentum late in the season after the initial 0:4 start. Los Ratones went 5-1 in its final six games heading into the final day, with practice improving rapidly and the roster starting to stabilize on stage.
Los Ratones came into the final weekend controlling their own destiny: win both matches, and Caedrel’s squad was in the playoffs, and from the 3rd place, no less. They took the first step on Saturday with a win over SK Gaming, putting themselves in a strong position heading into the last day thanks to favorable tiebreak scenarios.
On the final day of the LEC Versus’ regular season, LR met Team Vitality, which was alternating between hot and cold performances. Los Ratones controlled most of the game well, but a couple of missteps and bad dives saw Vitality back into the game. The French team managed to close it out, leaving Caedrel’s dependant on others’ results, and none of them went LR’s way.
Caedrel said he’s proud the group proved it belonged at this level, and he highlighted individual growth across the lineup, claiming Simon “Baus” Hofverberg developed into an LEC-level toplaner, Veljko “Velja” Čamdžić found his footing as the split progressed, and both Tim “Nemesis” Lipovšek and Jesper “Crownie” Nyström became pillars for the team both in comms and shotcalling, and outside the game. He also highlighted Martin “Rekkles” Larsson’s first split as an LEC support and his clear progress to becoming probably the best support in the league. Additionally, he also thanked the support squad: the coaches, analysts, and managers, while including G2 for providing the team accommodation.
On what comes next, Caedrel said Los Ratones is unlikely to return in any form that resembles the same team. He expects players to go their separate ways, with some potentially pursuing pro opportunities, others going back into streaming. He did leave the door open to occasional reunions for showmatches or special events, but he doesn’t want to reform Los Ratones with any other roster.
Caedrel also said a behind-the-scenes documentary is in the works, with Red Bull following the team throughout the split. Nothing specific was shared, but we expect very high production quality, as is the norm for Red Bull.
None of the players, aside from Baus, has announced any future plans. The Swede himself said that he’s no longer going to play on the pro-level, going back to streaming instead.
