FaZe Clan Signs Organization’s First All-female Professional Esports Team
FaZe Clan, the lifestyle and media platform rooted in gaming and youth culture, announced a ground-breaking moment for FaZe and the gaming industry: the signing of FaZe’s first all-female professional esports team. The new team, which will compete under FaZe’s VALORANT banner comprised pro players Jennifer “refinnej” Le, Emma “emy” Choe, Vannesa Emely “panini” Emory, Madison “maddiesuun” Mann, and Diane “di^” Tran.
The team will make its first public appearance under FaZe Clan while competing in the upcoming 2023 season of the Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) Game Changers Series. The VCT Game Changers Series was first introduced in 2022. It was created to supplement the standard VCT competitive season by creating new opportunities and exposure for women and other marginalized genders within VALORANT esports. The start of the 2023 season sees the introduction of FaZe Clan and other major gaming organizations to the series.
“It’s been a long time coming but we’re stoked to officially announce bringing on our first all female esports pro team for VALORANT. Signing this group of talented women is just the beginning of bringing female gamers to the forefront at FaZe and I can’t wait to watch them play as a team. Check them out during the 2023 VCT Game Changers Series – they’re ready to bring the heat to the competition,” Erik Anderson, Head of Esports at FaZe Clan, said.
Before joining FaZe Clan, the women played together on various pro teams throughout the years, making the new FaZe Clan female VALORANT team an exciting reunion. Refinnej, panini, and maddiesuun previously played together for Complexity GX3, while refinnej, mmy, and di^ played competitive Counter Strike Global Offensive (CS:GO) for Count Logic Gaming (CLG) Red. The first time all five women competed together was in 2022 for the Champions Tour Game Changers Series III: North America playing under the name “Hamboigas”.
