Allegiance announce shock closure after 22 months

Allegiance, once known as the highest grossing team in console esports. has announced on Thursday that it will be shutting its doors today, closing the book on the company after just 22 months in operation.

The organisation formed in October 2015, and rose to prominence when the organisation’s original Halo roster of Brett ‘Naded’ Leonard, Visal ‘eL ToWn’ Mohana, Ayden ‘Suspector’ Hill and Carlos ‘Cratos’ Ayala placed second in the 2016 Halo World Championship.

When the organisation launched in 2015, they said: “Our goal here at Allegiance is to become the world’s best across every game we get our hands on. We want to be the best in regards to the competition we face, the inclusion of our fans, and of course, the treatment of our players.”

The team also signed teams in Call of Duty, Gears of War, H1Z1, Smite and Super Smash Bros, in additional to several speedrunners. However, it seems none of these teams had the success required to put Allegiance where they wanted to be in terms of fanbase or finances.

“Allegiance is no longer able to compete with the organizations at the highest level with our current funding and found that now is the best time to depart from this gaming landscape,” said Connor Hall, the organisation’s general manager in an official statement. “It’s certainly an exciting time for esports and we are thrilled to see the future regardless of our involvement.”

Hall cites the increasingly competitive nature of the industry as one of the reasons for the closure. He also says that he’s committed to helping his teams find new homes despite the end of the organisation. Allegiance’s Call of Duty team will be playing next week for the CoD World League Championship, and a good performance in the $1.5m tournament could see them quickly snapped up by a new organisation.