Former LCS MVP Spica not on team for 2024 Spring Split

Superstar League of Legends jungler Spica, regarded by many as one of the very best players in North America, will not be playing in the competition’s 2024 Spring Split after what he today described as “some unfortunate circumstances.”

Spica represented FlyQuest throughout the 2023 season after signing several weeks out from the LCS Season Kickoff. While he was originally signed through to Nov. 19, 2024, the organization instead decided to undergo a huge overhaul following several disappointing results, the greatest of which was the star-studded team missing the 2023 World Championship entirely after slumping to ninth in Summer. FlyQuest recruited European jungler Inspired in the reshuffle.

A close up of EG Inspired — _{Inspired was one of several high-profile signings FlyQuest made last month. Photo by Colin Young-Wolff via Riot Games}

Now, due to what Spica today described as “unfortunate circumstances” when sharing the news on X (formerly Twitter), the 22-year-old League star will be teamless heading into 2024. His plan for the time being is to stream full-time across the first months of the season, likely on Twitch.

He will then begin actively searching for new team opportunities for Summer. On that front, Dot Esports would be very surprised if Spica did not field several offers heading into the second split of the year, especially if any LCS teams underperform. Six teams will contest Spring with a new jungler so there’s every chance some pick-ups don’t gel with the rest of the roster, underperform, or even just simply appeal less than Spica in free agency.

The height of Spica’s League came three years ago when he played for TSM. After veteran LCS superstars Bjergsen and Doublelift retired—the latter of whom returned a season later—the roster’s reigns were left in Spica’s hands. The team, which included Huni, PowerOfEvil, Lost, and SwordArt, finished the regular season in top spot with a 30-15 record (18-9 in Summer), with Spica performing so well he was crowned the competition’s most valuable player and was included in the All-Pro first team ahead of 2023 Championship.

The new-look TSM roster failed to make Worlds after running fourth in the postseason and had to watch Cloud9, Team Liquid, and 100 Thieves fly the NA flag in Europe. Spica then had to suffer a similar fate two more times in as many seasons, running 5th-6th with TSM in 2022 and then a paltry ninth with FlyQuest.

One factor that likely played a major role in Spica not ending up on a League roster for 2024 is that the LCS was reduced from ten teams to eight right before free agency began. The shock move saw Evil Geniuses and Golden Guardians withdrawn from the competition without any replacements, despite several heavyweight organizations offering to buy the slots. This meant two less junglers were needed in the top-flight NA league.

The LCS Spring Split is slated to begin on Saturday, Jan. 20, under the watchful eye of new commissioner Markz. The league has returned to weekend play.