Jatt announced as Team Liquid’s new head coach, leaves League of Legends caster role

Jatt (Riot Games)

Team Liquid has officially announced their new head coach is League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) shoutcaster Joshua “Jatt” Leesman.

Jatt is a well-respected veteran figure in the world of North American League of Legends. He started his career as a jungler for Team Dignitas in 2011 but soon after retired from pro play to work for Riot. Jatt remained a caster until 2019 when he swapped to working in game development for Riot with the balance team, but later returned to casting.

This will be Jatt’s first time acting as a coach, and first time with a professional organization since his departure from Dignitas.  However, Jatt is one of the most respected analysts in the scene and the announcement is being met with positive feedback from Liquid fans and players alike. 

Team Liquid (TL) fueled speculation over who would be their new head coach last week when they announced that Jang “Cain” Nu-Ri would be stepping down to a less significant role within the team. Cain had been TL’s head coach since 2017 and saw the organization win four consecutive titles under his belt. Cain came under fire after a tumultuous Spring split which saw the team finish ninth place, the worst title defense in LCS history, and after the vocal departure of star ADC Yilliang “Doublelift” Peng.

Jatt is hopeful for the coming split stating, “I think overall the story of Summer Split should hopefully be redemption and it can hopefully move [us] towards more.”

Jatt and the post-Doublelift TL will be making their debut with the start of the Summer Split on June 20.  The new head coach has been vocal about his excitement about the roster, it will be interesting to see if that will lead to a return to form for the four-time champions.