Imperial has announced that Lincoln “fnx” Lau will no longer be a player on their starting roster and will instead assume coaching duties for the IEM Rio Americas RMR and the Major itself, if the team qualifies. Though it is unclear if he will stay on as coach after that, the organization also announced that he will remain with them as a streamer and content creator.
The change follows in the wake of Luis “peacemaker” Tadeu‘s departure from the team on August 12, and amid reports that Marcelo “chelo” Cespedes will take fnx‘s spot on the active roster. The 24-year-old has already departed MIBR, indicating his arrival on Imperial should follow in the near future.
fnx will still be on the server for Imperial as a coach
The move marks the end of fnx‘s six-month stint as a player for Imperial. The 32-year-old had returned from inactivity to link up with Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo and Fernando “fer” Alvarenga in a reunion of the two-time Major winning Brazilian core dubbed “The Last Dance”, with the team surprising at PGL Major Antwerp with a 9-11th place finish.
The lineup began to flounder soon after that though, and were unable to replicate the sort of level they showcased at the Major in subsequent tournaments, winning just two of their next 13 matches.
Their appearances at Big Events were also dismal as they were sent packing from IEM Dallas in last place and had their run at IEM Cologne brought to an end in the Play-In stage, leaving them heading into the player break with just their Major run to look back on.
The team should announce fnx‘s replacement in the near future as they will attend ESL Challenger Melbourne from September 2-4, for which they have already acquired visas and will be bootcamping ahead of.
With the change, Imperial‘s roster looks as follows:
Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo
