French esports organization Cooler Esports shuts down and releases all contracted players.
European Esports organization Cooler Esports announced today that it would shut down operations due to financial hardships stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. The France-based brand began its Esports endeavor with founders Rui Cao and Edouard Debrousse in 2018. Cooler became a prominent organization in Fortnite’s competitive scene. Several notable players, including Fortnite World Cup winners David “aqua” Wang and Emil “Nyhrox” Bergquist Pedersen spent time with Cooler during its three-year run. Unfortunately, this worldwide pandemic has made it impossible for the organization to continue operating.
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End of an Era
𝗔 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱𝗯𝘆𝗲 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗖𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗿 🦈
📺 https://t.co/GJi6nCtFhe pic.twitter.com/wUM8Nm2RFw
— COOLER (@CoolerEsports) April 6, 2021
Cooler’s Twitter account revealed the sad news, which coincided with a statement.
“Sadly, today will be the last active day for Cooler Esports as we close our operations after lengthy consideration,” it reads. “We have unfortunately reached this decision due to financial reasons, accelerated by COVID-19.”
The ongoing pandemic has claimed many Esports brands since it began in late-2019. Team Atlantis is another Fortnite organization that succumbed to the same fate. Cooler became one of the most recognizable teams in Fortnite with names like the previously mentioned World Cup Champions – aqua and Nyhrox. Fourteen players in total filtered through Cooler Esports over the last three years with varying bouts of success. Before closing its doors, the French organization had three players remaining, one of which being aqua, who spent nearly two years with Cooler.
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Community Rallies in Support
Some other notable figures around the community offered words of thanks and encouragement to the team. Former member Noward took to Twitter, stating, “Only good memories thank you for everything!” Nyhrox left the organization in 2019 after winning the World Cup but still took some time to thank Cooler on Twitter for helping him along in his career. Aqua, who has been fighting some hand nerve pains and took a break from Fortnite, has not yet addressed Cooler Esports’ closing. The Austrian professional player will presumably hit the free-agent market as well, with one of the most impressive track records in Fortnite history.
It’s truly disheartening to see homegrown organizations like Cooler fall victim to a pandemic that has left its mark on the world. Despite esports benefitting in some sense, a handful of teams in the scene lack the same financial backing of a FaZe Clan or Team Liquid. Hopefully, Cooler can resurface down the line after COVID-19 withers away. Until then, we can only appreciate the organization for supporting two historical players and the competitive community.
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Source: https://estnn.com/fortnite-cooler-esports-releases-roster-shuts-down-due-to-covid-19-hardships/
