T1 Announces Steel as New VALORANT In-Game Leader

Joshua “steel” Nissan, one of the biggest names in Esports today, has found a new home, with the former CS:GO pro having been named as T1’s in-game leader on Monday. The British-Canadian pro has played for Chaos Esports Club and 100 Thieves since making the switch to VALORANT. However, after being moved to 100 Thieves’ inactive roster on December 5, it did not take long for the veteran to sign with T1.

Steel had been with 100 Thieves since September 2020, having been a key part of their success in the early months. With him on board, the organization won the North America First Strike event, before qualifying for the inaugural Masters event of the VALORANT Champions Tour. However, with the org having not won a tournament of any note since then, it came as little surprise when those in charge decided to make roster changes.

Why Steel Parted Ways with 100 Thieves

100 Thieves remains one of the top teams in the North American region. However, their top-four finish at the VCT Masters Berlin was disappointing, a result which eventually led to Steel being dropped ahead of the Last Chance Qualifier. Aaron “b0i” Thao replaced the 31-year-old, drawing much speculation on the future of Steel.

Breaking the news via their official Twitter page, T1 simply posted: “POGGGGGGG ROSTER UPDATE. WELCOME, @JoshNissan aka STEEL TO THE #T1VALORANT SQUAD” The announcement came after 100 Thieves confirmed that Steel would be moving on, with the fan favorite having become T1’s new in-game leader. Steel was welcomed to T1 by head coach David Denis, as part of an impressive announcement video.

What Steel Had to Say On His Arrival at T1

Having his say on Steel’s arrival, Denis stated that: “Josh has a really impressive record as an IGL. We really wanted a strong leader, a strong voice, someone that could bring a lot of direction to the team.”

The video ended with Steel outlining his plans following his arrival at T1, including how the team is preparing for the start of the 2022 VCT season. Qualifying for next year’s Champions event is a must, with the org currently finding themselves in 14th position in the North American standings, based on information from VLR.gg. Steel could well be the missing link for T1, with his experience and skillset being unrivalled by most.

At T1, Steel will compete alongside Tyler “Skadoodle” Latham, Timothy “automatic” Ta, Rahul “curry” Nemani, Anthony “dawn” Hagopian and Zander “thwifo” Kim. Although, further roster changes are expected.