Team Dignitas, the esports org from the UK and now co-owned by the Philadelphia 76ers, have signed their first all-female CSGO team.
Esports News UK caught wind of this news back in January but were sworn to secrecy until the big announcement.
The team consists of:
- Emmalee “emuhleet” Garrido (Team Captain and AWPer, second from right)
- Lynnie “artStar” Noquez (lurker, far right)
- Mounira “Goosebreeder” Dobie (entryfragger, second from left)
- Amanda “rain” Smith (entryfragger, far left)
- Catherine “Cath” Leroux (not in picture)
- Heather “sapphiRe” Garozzo (team manager and back-up player, not in picture)
They will compete in international coed and all-female CSGO competitions.
The team placed first at the 2015 Copenhagen Games Female Tournament and in the top eight at the 2016 coed Fragadelphia 9 tournament in Philadelphia.
The team will make their debut under the Team Dignitas banner at the Intel Challenge hosted at IEM Katowice in Poland this week on March 2nd and 3rd.
“Our intent is to recruit and develop the most talented players in the world,” said Jonathan Kemp, Team Dignitas CEO.
“Naturally we support the growth of female gamers in the industry, but chiefly saw this as an opportunity to bring premier playing talent into our Team Dignitas family.”
“Naturally we support the growth of female gamers in the industry, but chiefly saw this as an opportunity to bring premier playing talent into our Team Dignitas family.”
Jonathan Kemp, Team Dignitas CEO
UK esports veteran Michael “ODEE” O’Dell, Team Dignitas President, added: “We are extremely happy to have signed a team who desires, as we do, to compete and win at the highest levels of play.
“We look forward to working alongside them in their journey and continued development as professional gamers. This is a team of talented competitors who has shown a drive to succeed and dedication to their sport and fans. We are ecstatic to announce the first all-female team in Team Dignitas’ proud 13-year history.”
ODEE previously told Esports News UK he felt that ‘at the start of esports, games weren’t that appealing to girls’.
“I think that’s why there weren’t many females emerging during the first ten years of first-person shooters,” he said, but added that times are changing and esports is now more appealing to female players.
“What excites me the most about joining the Team Dignitas family is the amount of support and respect they have from the eSports community,” said Emmalee ‘emuhleet’ Garrido, Team Dignitas CSGO Captain and AWPer. “It is a dream come true to play for Team Dignitas and within the Philadelphia 76ers family; and we do consider our team a true family.”
Heather ‘sapphiRe’ Garozzo, manager, commented: “To join such a historic organisation is an absolute honor. As someone that has worked both in esports and professional sports, and been an avid fan of both, it’s exciting to see these two worlds collide to become a harmonious unit.”
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
