What would you like to see in the future of eSports ?
More professionalism is always welcome . We were very lucky with our players , but we ’ ve made some different experiences as well . I ’ d like to see players develop a sense of loyalty towards the clubs that they ’ re signing for , and that they don ’ t leave the second they get a better contract on the table .
In terms of money , to have a set minimum for salaries is a must of course , players train and work very hard , so they should be paid accordingly . It ’ s more of a question of whether we should eventually put a limit on it . If money is your biggest concern for your eSport career , you should play for TSM and not UOL anyway .
Isn ’ t the fact that you constantly have to replace your players a bit annoying by now ?
It ’ s no secret that it ’ s easier to buy a player off of us rather than Fnatic . It ’ s annoying , but that ’ s just something you have to accept in life in general . But I think that people have started to realise that UOL is a team that consistently gets the best out of talented players . Signing for a better team doesn ’ t guarantee success . and it ’ s not necessarily the team with the biggest budget wins the League . Splyce is a recent example of this as well . And if someone would ’ ve asked me where Fnatic and Giants would end up at the end of the season , I would ’ ve swapped their places in an instant . A lot of players have started to realise this as well . I don ’ t think PowerOfEvil is a bad player , he just doesn ’ t fit well with Origen . If he would ’ ve stayed with us , I think he would ’ ve grown a lot more as a player .
What kind of image would you like Unicorns of Love to portray as a club ?
We ’ re a family business , and we like to make our players feel like they ’ re part of the family too . We try to visit the team in Berlin as often as we can . Everyone is very close with one another . So if a player leaves , that can really hurt . PowerOfEvil for example was such a nice guy to have around , and it hurts to see all the hate he gets on reddit and other social media . He ’ s a fantastic player , he just doesn ’ t suit Origen very well . Just because he left us doesn ’ t mean we stop liking him .
What do you think of Social Media ’ s role ? Has it turned for the worst ?
Obviously as a team owner you ’ re scared that the hate could heavily impact a player . Players themselves know when they ’ re making a mistake , so a lot of the stuff said online is pointless or plain mean . So instead of focusing on what Social Media has to say , we try to analyse mistakes , look at the progress a player has made and move on to the next fight . Sometimes you ’ re got to accept that things aren ’ t running perfectly , it ’ s a calculated risk you have to take . When a player makes mistakes , we tell him “ Listen , the most important thing is what we think of you . We ’ ll always believe in you . Always !”
Should eSports be considered a sport in Europe as well ?
I ’ m not too sure . I think that sports in general is tracking away further and further from the competition and is all about entertainment nowadays . Looking at Olympia , I ’ m watching Wrestling , for three minutes nothing ’ s happening , so I switch to a different sport because that one is more entertaining . I don ’ t think it ’ s necessary to accept it as a sport , when you could just fill a bunch of legal gaps instead . At the moment , it ’ s in some sort of limbo , with problems like Visa issues . All modern sports are about getting a sponsor in front of the camera . eSports has that as well . The only issue is that you can ’ t have a break in the middle of a game for advertisements . If you look at American sports , there are always ad breaks in between .
Have you received any offers for Unicorns of Love ?
There were a couple of investors interested in buying up Unicorns . But we didn ’ t sell . We ’ ll never sell . We ’ ll stay within the scene and try to shake it up as much as possible !
Thank you very much for the interview !
You can find Jos Mallant on Twitter at @ UOLDad