TSM CEO Andy ‘Reginald’ Dinh responded to a post on the team’s subreddit criticizing him for not fulfilling his pledge to “double down” on his company’s investment in the LCS team.
In November 2022, TSM publicly released the complete roster of their LCS Academy, which sparked a debate among the team’s supporters regarding the team’s direction. Also, TSM would sign an LCS team for 2023 that some supporters dubbed a “budget roster,” adding veterans Toàn ‘Neo’Trn and Colin ‘Solo’ Earnest to the team along with seasoned jungler Lee ‘Bugi’ Seong-yeop.
In his response to the article about the Academy list, Reginald pleaded with the readers to be patient and assured them there would be news in January. The TSM CEO declared, “We’re going to double down on LoL.”
Why TSM couldn’t invest more in the LCS team
However, that declaration was never made, and TSM finished the Spring Split with an 8-10 record, just missing the playoffs, according to coach Wong ‘Chawy’ Xing, despite having the lowest funding in the league. TSM supporters once more expressed their displeasure with the LCS team, and Reginald replied to the Reddit post by stating his reasons for being unable to fulfill his pledge.
I had intended to double down on the league, but due to how things turned out, he said we could not do so this season. Reginald continued, citing “business/legal reasons” for his prolonged silence regarding the company’s esports plans. He vowed to clarify the situation “soon.”
His statement coincides with news that TSM has suspended some of its gaming endeavors after quitting Rainbow Six Siege in February. Additionally, according to the report, TSM may be seeking to sell its place in the LCS, something they have reportedly thought about in the past.
A day after the story, Reginald addressed it and attempted to reassure fans that TSM was still devoted to esports and actively seeking to return to Counter-Strike.
TSM is one of many esports groups that had to reduce staff due to the possibility of a recession. Recent departures from TSM include vice president of esports operations Dominic Kallas, chief operating officer Walter Wang, league of legends general manager Yang ‘Glen’ Po-Jen, and team manager Chien-Yu ‘Kristine’ Huang. Reginald cited the company’s “over-hiring and expansion too quickly” as the reason for their departures. He continued, “With the economic downturn, we made the adjustments needed to be sustainable.
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