Deficio is one of the best shoutcasters in all of Europe, and any fan of the EU LCS is familiar with his energy and commanding voice during League of Legend matches. However, a recent announcement on his Facebook shows that Deficio will be moving from a full-time Riot employee to a freelance shoutcaster.

For fans, the biggest question is whether or not this means Deficio is transitioning out of the EU LCS. However, Deficio was quick to address this concern.

Deficio went on to hint that he has plans to work on “a few projects that I feel really passionate about.” While he isn’t releasing any details yet, the post was optimistic about the future and about Deficio’s passion for esports in Europe. While the move is worrying for some, it is unlikely it will be the last we see of him. Deficio’s career has been dominated by his success and climbing through the ranks of esports, so it was always pretty unlikely he would stop at just shoutcasting.

Starting as a mid-laner, Deficio played for several teams in 2012 in the infancy of League of Legends. In just a year’s time, he would move from player to manager and back again for the Copenhagen Wolves. After that, he transitioned to Ninjas in Pyjamas as a part of the coaching and management team, and that was after only two years in the competitive scene. Shortly after, he joined Riot, where for the past four years he has become an icon of the EU LCS. In fact, fans across Reddit were quick to show their support for Deficio and to warn Riot about damaging their relationship with him. One Redditor said:

For many fans, the professional scene isn’t just about players and teams – it’s also about the people that they spend time with every week. This was obvious at the outrage and drama that came when MonteCristo left Riot on less than agreeable terms. While some casters simply move on – as Crumbzz did to the OWL – Monte left with the equivalent of flipping his previous bosses the bird.

At the time, Monte criticized Riot for what he described as less than competitive salaries for casters. He was also critical of how Riot chose to operate with both casters and analysts. Riot has always preferred to work with professionals on staff rather than freelancing as Deficio is currently doing – something Monte said negatively impacted the culture. Considering Deficio’s positivity, Riot may have learned that lesson.

Ironically, while many fear Deficio might be following in Monte’s footsteps to leave League of Legends behind for brighter pastures, he may just be following in different path set by Monte years before. As Deficio points out in his post, so long as he is actively casting the EU LCS, he will not be working with any LCS teams, but that doesn’t mean he won’t ever work with any LCS teams. Following his 2015 suspension for tampering, wherein Copenhagen Wolves were in discussions with him to join their team, he may just be taking things slow and doing them the right way. As a freelancer, he may now be free to at the very least discuss option, whereas before it would lead to a violation of terms in his contract.

None of this guarantees that Deficio is moving back into management or coaching for teams, but it would certainly make sense. He has fulfilled the role in the past, and his many years at Riot have given him a level of insight few could match. Whatever the case, we are glad he is still with us now, and we’ll be watching to see what he does next in esports.