FaZe Clan announced the third member of their VALORANT team on Friday, former Overwatch League professional Zachary “ZachaREEE” Lombardo. The 19-year-old became the third recruit to be signed to the FaZe VALORANT lineup. He joins former Overwatch pro Corey “Corey” Nigra and former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro Jason “jasonR” Ruchelski, whose signings were announced back in June.
Only Doha remains in the active lineup. (Photo courtesy Dallas Fuel)
ZachaREEE competed in Overwatch professionally as a Flex DPS player for Renegades, Fusion University, and the Dallas Fuel. While playing with the Fusion University, ZachaREEE helped lead his team to the NA Contenders championship in Overwatch Contenders 2018 Season 1 and Season 2. He most recently played for the Dallas Fuel before announcing his retirement from Overwatch to pursue a career in VALORANT in June.
“I have always been into first person shooters like Call of Duty, Battlefield, and Counter-Strike.” ZachaREEE explained in his FaZe introduction video. “I played Overwatch professionally from 2016 to 2020. Transitioning from Overwatch to Valorant has been pretty smooth. A lot of the ability usage is similar and carries over really easily. The big difference between Overwatch and VALORANT is the aim style, so I have been practicing my aim and making sure my crosshair placement is good. I am super stoked to be joining FaZe and can’t wait to bring home trophy’s with the boys.”
ZachaREEE already has some experience competing with FaZe’s VALORANT team, having appeared as a stand-in with FaZe at the T1 x Nerdstreet Gamers Showdown. Based on today’s announcement, FaZe must have liked their experience playing with him.
Beyond the VALORANT Ignition Series, Riot has revealed very little about their upcoming plans for VALORANT esports. Despite knowing little about Riot’s plans for VALORANT esports, various major esports organizations including 100 Thieves, Ninja in Pyjamas, Immortals and more have announced their tournament-ready rosters.
While many teams already announced complete rosters, the FaZe Clan has been taking its time and announcing their VALORANT talent one by one, as they sign them. It is possible that FaZe is hoping that their strong initial acquisitions will attract further talent to join their VALORANT lineup. In the meantime, FaZe has two remaining slots on their roster to fill.
