Cloud9 has a big gap to fill.
According to multiple reports, the Cloud9 VALORANT team as well as one of the best players in the world, have mutually agreed to part ways. Both Jaccob "yay" Whiteaker and C9 have agreed to sign the release that terminates yay's contract with the org.
Based on the same reports, it seems that this was not down to performance and that yay will not be part of the org in any capacity moving forward. It also appears that C9 will be hosting trials to complete the roster when the VCT LOCK//IN ends, which should be in a few days.
Speaking of the VCT LOCK//IN, it is still ongoing and with that said, C9 is the first and earliest team out of the gate with a roster change. C9 got eliminated during the alpha bracket stage of the tournament, which was in the second round at the hands of DRX.
Yay, who was with the team for only five months, will once again looking for a new roster. Formerly of OpTic Gaming, yay found plenty of success, particularly last year with multiple second-place finishes as well as winning the Stage 1 Masters in Reykjavík. It was also reported that C9 would be interested in signing one of yay's former teammates from OpTic, Jimmy "Marved" Nguyen.
Cloud9 is set to compete in the VCT Americas International League, which will take place from March 26 to May 28 to determine the top three teams that will go to the VCT Masters in Tokyo.
