SENTINELS LAUNCH
ESPORTS ORGANIZATION PHOENIX1 REBRANDS TO SENTINELS
LOS ANGELES (June 6th, 2018) -- Today, the esports organization Phoenix1 has officially rebranded to the Sentinels.
As Phoenix1, the organization was founded swiftly in May 2016 and built a League of Legends team just in time to join the NA LCS Summer Split 2016. In 2017 with the lead time to structure a stronger roster, Phoenix1 finished 3rd in the spring split in Vancouver, with ADC Donghyeon “Arrow” Noh named the split MVP. In the summer split, the organization signed new talent Mike “MikeYeung” Yeung and developed him into the Rookie of the Split.
At the end of 2017, Phoenix1 sold its LCS slot as part of the franchising process, focusing instead on a new partnership with the Kroenke Sports & Entertainment Group to develop the organization and roster for their franchise, the Los Angeles Gladiators in Blizzard Entertainment’s newly inaugurated Overwatch League.
“The last year our priority was to build a competitive team and brand for the Overwatch league,” says organizational founder Rob Moore. “Now that Eric Ma and the group have successfully launched the Gladiators, we have decided to relaunch our broader esports organizational brand as the Sentinels.”
“The goal of the rebrand is to shift the position of the organization,” says creative director Riley Jamison. “With Sentinels, we're turning a brand into a network. A network of connected, vigilant gamers who can rally behind our players. Watching their games. Participating on stream and on social. The logo is a symbol representing the connected tech aesthetic of the brand. The katakana letters spell out “Sentinels” and speak to the cyberpunk, future-Tokyo visuals seen throughout our marketing.”
The rebrand to the Sentinels begins with the formation of a professional Hearthstone team. The team will be anchored by former Phoenix1 Hearthstone player Cong “StrifeCro” Shu. Sentinels have recently signed Josh “Impact” Graham and James “GreenSheep” Luo. The team looks to compete in Blizzard Entertainment’s upcoming Hearthstone Championship Tour.
“We moved into Hearthstone because of the tournament structure supported by Blizzard. Since we already had the exceptionally talented StrifeCro, it seemed like a natural move to enter the new Hearthstone tour. We’re also exploring new opportunities in other esports. I’ve got my eye on a few more games,” says Charlie Lipsie, Director of Esports.
Follow the Sentinels on Twitter @Sentinels, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitch.
Follow the Gladiators on Twitter @LAGladiators, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitch.