Ji “meow” Dong-jun has announced his departure from BOOM Esports, ending his time with the Indonesian team after 3 years and 4 months.
SOUTH KOREA – Ji “meow” Dong-jun has officially announced his departure from BOOM Esports, marking the end of his long stint with the Indonesian organization. The Korean coach shared on Twitter that he was “told to look for a new team” and is now an unrestricted free agent.
The news comes as a shock, especially since it arrives just days after BOOM Esports earned promotion to the VCT Pacific League following the disqualification of Bleed Esports. BOOM secured their spot after finishing second in VCT Ascension Pacific Jakarta, narrowly losing to South Korea’s Sin Prisa Gaming in the finals.
meow joined BOOM Esports in mid-2021, making his debut with the team at the 2021 VALO2ASIA Launch Invitational. Under his leadership, BOOM Esports achieved a fourth-place finish in the 2022 VCT APAC Stage 1 Challengers and went on to win the 2022 VCT APAC Last Chance Qualifier, which earned them their first international appearance at VALORANT Champions Istanbul.
In 2023, BOOM Esports remained at the forefront of Indonesia by winning 2023 VALORANT Challengers Indonesia Split 2, which qualified them for VCT Ascension Pacific 2023 in Bangkok. However, a narrow defeat against eventual champions Bleed Esports in the semifinals prevented them from moving up to the tier-one league in Seoul.
Running it back for the second time this year, meow once again led the team to victory in the Ascension qualification during the 2024 VALORANT Challengers Indonesia Split 2. This victory also cemented their position as Indonesia’s representatives in Ascension for the second consecutive time, despite ultimately falling in a dramatic and tightly contested grand final against Sin Prisa Gaming in Jakarta.
Now, meow is open to hearing offers from teams in different countries and continents, and has indicated his readiness to relocate anywhere, as he is fluent in both Korean and English.
“Not everything has to be shared publicly, but we made our decision, and I really do care and love this man. So, I hope I still get to see him,” BOOM Esports CEO Gary “Natshuba” Ongko clarified on Twitter.
Meanwhile, it remains uncertain who will step into the role of head coach for BOOM Esports as they prepare for the 2025 VCT Pacific season in Seoul, South Korea.
With meow’s exit, BOOM Esports currently look as follows:
- 🇮🇩 Rizkie “BerserX” Adla Kusuma
- 🇮🇩 Fikri “famouz” Zaki
- 🇮🇩 Hildegard “Shiro” Arnaldo
- 🇮🇩 Sheldon “NcSlasher” Andersen
- 🇸🇬 Sha “ZesBeeW” Mohtar (Inactive)
- 🇮🇩 Harry “6fingers” Tjahjadi Putra (Assistant coach)
- 🇮🇩 Fidel “fidelwow” Saputra (Analyst)
For more insights on the Asian VALORANT scene and upcoming content like this, be sure to like and follow VALO2ASIA on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.
Cover photo courtesy of VCT Pacific
