T1 (Overwatch team)

The T1 Overwatch division represents SK Telecom T1, a South Korean esports team operated by T1 Entertainment & Sports, a joint venture between SK Telecom and Comcast Spectacor. The team competes in Korean region of Overwatch Contenders (OWC) as an academy team for the Philadelphia Fusion of the Overwatch League (OWL). Founded in 2018, the division originally competed as Fusion University (FU). In that time, they won four consecutive North America Contenders titles and the 2019 Atlantic Showdown.

T1
Founded2018
LeagueOverwatch Contenders
ConferencePacific
RegionKorea
Team historyFusion University
2018–2019
T1
2020–present
ColorsRed, black, white
              
Owners
Head coachJeong "ArHaN" Won-hyeop
Affiliation(s)Philadelphia Fusion
Regional titles
  • 4
  • 2018 Season 1
  • 2018 Season 2
  • 2018 Season 3
  • 2019 Season 1
Interregional titles
  • 1
  • 2019 Atlantic Showdown

Franchise history

2018–2019: Fusion University
Fusion University's logo.

On January 29, 2018, the Philadelphia Fusion formally announced their academy team would be named Fusion University and begin competition in the North American region of Overwatch Contenders.[1]

In their first season of play, FU posted a perfect 5–0 record en route to qualify for the playoffs, where they capped off the season with victory over Toronto Esports to claim the 2018 Season 1 North America title.[2][3] Following the win, the team fell to the Contenders Europe Champions British Hurricane in the 2018 Atlantic Showdown by a score of 1–3.[4] The following season, Fusion University again posted perfect a 5–0 record in the group stages and defeated XL2 Academy in the 2018 Season 2 North America Grand Finals to win back-to-back regional titles.[5] For the third season of 2018, the team, again, did not drop a match and defeated ATL Academy in the North America Grand Finals, taking home their third regional title in three seasons.[6]

Fusion competed in the North America East region for season one of 2019. Going into their last match of the group stages, FU had a 6–0 record and was set to face Mayhem Academy; Mayhem won the match 3–1, snapping Fusion's 30-game win streak.[7] As the second seed, the team had a first-round bye for the first week of the playoffs, and went on to defeat Gladiators Legion in the finals to claim their fourth consecutive North America Contenders title.[8] As the North America champions, Fusion qualified for the 2019 Atlantic Showdown, an interregional double-elimination tournament. The team did not lose a single match, and dropped only one map throughout its entirety, to claim the title of Atlantic Contenders Champions.[9]

After winning the first Atlantic Showdown, Fusion University announced that they would be moving from the North American division to compete in Korean Trials; the move was reportedly made to abide by the new region lock rules, which were implemented in 2019 Season 1, though FU was given a season-long grace period.[10] The team qualified for Korea Contenders, but they struggled in the group stages, posting a meager 3–4 record. FU qualified for the Korea regional playoffs, but they fell in the quarterfinals to RunAway.[11]

2020–present: T1

On January 15, 2020, Fusion University officially rebranded to T1.[12]

Seasons overview
Year Season Region OWC regular season Regional playoffs Interregional events
Finish Wins Losses Win %
Fusion University
20181North America1st501.000WinnersAtlantic Showdown – Runners-up
2North America1st501.000WinnersNone held
3North America1st501.000Winners
20191North America East2nd61.857WinnersAtlantic Showdown – Winners
2Korea5th34.429QuarterfinalsDid not qualify
T1
20201Korea3rd43.571Losers' Round 1None held
Regular season record288.778
Playoff record113.786

Current roster
T1 roster
PlayersCoaches
RoleHandleNameNationalityPrevious team
Damage PERFACT  An Ye-seung  South Korea  ATL Academy 
Damage Na1st  Lee Ho-sung  South Korea  Meta Bellum 
Tank ION  Lim Ji-Heon  South Korea  GC Busan WAVE 
Tank QoQ  Yu Sung-jun  South Korea  RunAway 
Support FiXa  Kwon Yeong-hun  South Korea  O2 Academy 
Support Physics  Kim Jin  South Korea  White Whale Incheon E-Sports 
Head coach
  • Jeong "ArHaN" Won-hyeop
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (2W) Two-way player
  • (I) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injury/Illness

Latest roster transaction: March 19, 2020.

OWL buyouts and promotions

All Overwatch Contenders players are eligible to be promoted by their affiliated Overwatch League team or signed to any other Overwatch League during specified non-blackout periods.[13]

2018
  • Support Elijah "Elk" Gallagher was promoted to Philadelphia Fusion on September 25 while still remaining a member of Fusion University on a two-way contract.[14]
  • DPS Zachary "ZachaREEE" Lombardo was signed by Dallas Fuel on December 3.[15]

2019
  • Support Kim "Alarm" Kyung-bo was promoted to the Philadelphia Fusion on October 30.[16]
  • Tank Shin "BERNAR" Se-won and support Kim "Fuze" Tae-hoon were traded to the London Spitfire on October 30.[16]
  • Tank Adam "Beast" Denton was signed by Toronto Defiant on October 30.[17]
  • DPS Lee "WhoRU" Seung-joon was signed to the New York Excelsior on December 4.[18]

References
  1. "Philadelphia Fusion Reveal Fusion University Contenders Roster". Dexerto. January 30, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  2. O'Brien, Joe (May 14, 2018). "Fusion University Wins Overwatch Contenders NA Season One - Final Placements". Dexerto. Archived from the original on July 7, 2018.
  3. Meyer, Guilherme (May 14, 2018). "In Case you Missed Anything: Esports Weekend + Monday News Recap". Inven Global. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  4. Scott-Jones, Richard (May 15, 2018). "British Hurricane are Overwatch Contenders Atlantic champions". PCGamesN. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  5. Wing, Robert (October 9, 2018). "Fusion University, the Lanimals". The Overwatch League. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  6. Neylan, Adam (January 25, 2019). "Elijah 'Elk' Gallagher on his path to pro and joining the Overwatch League". NBC Sports Philadelphia. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  7. Amos, Andrew (April 15, 2019). "Fusion University lose their first Contenders match against Mayhem Academy". Dot Esports. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  8. Feng, Evie (May 6, 2019). "Fusion University extends reign as 4-time Contenders Champions". NBC Sports Philadelphia. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  9. Jing Hao-liang (June 5, 2019). "Takeaways from the 2019 Overwatch Atlantic Showdown". NBC Sports Philadelphia. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  10. Richardson, Liz (June 2, 2019). "Fusion University moving from North American Contenders to Korean Trials". Dot Esports. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  11. Jing Hao Liang (September 10, 2019). "A year in review for the Fusion". NBC Sports Philadelphia. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  12. Fusion University [@FusionUni] (January 14, 2020). "Today, Fusion University officially becomes T1 in Overwatch Contenders Korea" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  13. Olmstead, Sydney (June 14, 2018). "Blizzard Reveals Information About Overwatch League Offseason". VGR. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  14. O'Brien, Joe (September 27, 2018). "Overwatch League Season One runners-up Philadelphia Fusion make first roster addition". Dexerto. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  15. Carpenter, Nicole (December 4, 2018). "Dallas Fuel signs 17-year-old ZachaREEE to flex DPS role". Dot Esports. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  16. "Fusion, Fuel, Defiant and more make Overwatch League roster moves". ESPN. Reuters. October 30, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  17. Field Level Media (October 30, 2019). "It's official: Defiant acquire Beasthalo". Gwinnett Prep Sports. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  18. Richardson, Liz (December 4, 2019). "Whoru joins the New York Excelsior". Dot Esports. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
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