16-year-old Valorant pro juicy has revealed that, despite being one of the best players in Singapore and a highly sought after player for teams, he has been forced out of the league due to his age and is now joining the military instead.
It’s been a rough couple of days for Singaporean Valorant fans. Though Paper Rex was able to make it all the way to the finals at Valorant Champions 2023, they were bested by Evil Geniuses in decisive fashion.
What’s more, Wang ‘Jinggg’ Jing Jie was very open about Valorant Champions 2023 being his very last tournament with the team before he goes off to serve mandatory military service.
However, Jinggg isn’t the only Valorant player from Singapore that’s had their career come to a screeching halt. Tyler ‘juicy’ Aeria, the player who carried Bleed on their path to the Pacific Valorant league, won’t be able to stick with the team due to his age. He’s decided to bow out and get his mandatory military service out of the way instead.
16-year-old pro juicy joins military when forced off Valorant team
juicy, and Bleed Esports as a whole, had what can only be described as a meteoric run through VCT 2023 Ascension Pacific. The tournament determines which tier 2 team deserves to get a spot in the main franchised league, pitting them against Valorant’s very best teams.
To say Bleed proved their worth is an understatement. The team 3-0ed the finals in both Valorant Challengers splits and subsequently 3-0ed SCARZ in a fight for the only Ascension spot. This team is a scary one, even for the best Valorant pro teams.
However, it’s been revealed that juicy won’t be able to keep his run with the team going due to the fact that Bleed has qualified for the franchised league.
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Riot confirmed i cant play franchise because of age so I decided to go serve national service first, see you guys next time
— DSG juicy (@juicyVALO) August 27, 2023
The minimum age required to play in the franchised league is 18, and juicy will only be 17 by the time the season starts next year. As a result, he can’t compete. While Bleed’s run to the top has been incredible for the team, it’s tragic in a way due to the qualification forcing juicy to give up on his Valorant career for now.
However, his being able to get his mandatory military service out of the way early will allow him to avoid the same issue Jinggg is running into now. Getting his service out of the way early on could end up being a blessing in disguise if juicy’s able to hold onto his skills as a Valorant pro and come back into the league when he’s of age.
Conscription for the Singaporean military usually lasts 2 years, and juicy’s able to join at the age of 17 with permission from his parents. As a result, he should be able to play again when he’s 19.
That said, this news deeply saddened those who supported him. Some were confused as to why he’s allowed to play in Ascension if he’d only be kicked when he joined the league, while others seemed taken aback by the fact that he can’t play Valorant professionally but can join the military.
Fans of these strong Singaporean players are hoping that both Jinggg and juicy will be able to carry on their careers and come back better than ever following their service.