JDG coach Homme took to Weibo to announce he’d be stepping away from the team after their loss to T1 at Worlds 2023, a loss that he in large part seems to have blamed himself for.
As signified by them sweeping every competition they were a part of before Worlds 2023 and setting themselves up to complete the Golden Road, JDG was the team in 2023.
Expectations for them were sky-high, with them being able to stand up even to T1 when it came to expectations for them going into the Semifinals match. In many ways, they seemed favored.
However, everything lined up for T1 and they looked near-unstoppable. And, following their loss and subsequent elimination from Worlds 2023, JDG head coach Homme has stepped down.
JDG coach Homme steps down after Worlds 2023 loss
It’s always difficult to not let a loss like the one JDG had at the hand of T1 taint the view of them as a team. Before that set, they hadn’t lost a single best of 5 all year and rarely dropped BO3 sets domestically.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
They dominated a region that seemed to be on top of the world, with the LPL being a forced to be reckoned with at every international competition through 2023.
However, JDG fell short when it mattered most. The tournament meta shifting to favor T1 combined with their home field advantage proved too much for JDG to handle, and coach Homme has decided to step away from coaching after their loss.
JDG Head Coach Homme posted on Weibo:
"I should have done better today. I did poorly so we lost the series.
Our players are all working pretty hard. I'm sorry for the LPL fans' expectations for us. I hope there will be more people cheer for JDG in the future.
Next year I will… pic.twitter.com/tftSrwkUSH
— LPL Fanclub (@LPLfanclub) November 12, 2023
After lamenting the loss, he revealed that he plans to step away next year despite JDG’s success outside of this series.
“Next year I will temporarily leave this stage. And it’s a pity that we don’t have a perfect ending eventually. But this year we’ve won 3 [Championships]~ so please don’t be too sad!”
It’s hard to say just how many members of JDG’s roster will stick around in 2024, but it’s clear that at least some members of the roster will be going their separate ways.