by in
Prominent North American esports organisation DarkZero Esports announced their first foray into the League of Legends esports scene on Sunday with the signing of the Maryville University roster.
The new team will compete as DarkZero Dragonsteel and feature top laner Frankie “Zamudo” Lin, mid laner Djalar “Spirax” Djiar, ADC Sajed “Sajed” Ziade, support Ryan “Zyko” Jung, and junglers Kaan “Shimmer” Tomak and Ganbat “Yuuji” Ulziidelger.
Today, we begin a new chapter with Maryville University.
Introducing DarkZero Dragonsteel, a League of Legends program built on shared vision and ambition.
NACL, March 26th – See you there
pic.twitter.com/oa1OqefxsU
— DarkZero (@DarkZeroGG) March 22, 2025
The players previously competed together at Dragonsteel — a collaboration between Brandon Sanderson’s Dragonsteel Books and the collegiate team of Maryville University — but returned under the old banner at the start of February.
Yuuji and co. join DarkZero Esports after a successful season in which they won four tournaments: CLOL North Conference 2024, NACE Starleague 2024 Spring, NACE Starleague 2024 Fall, and most notably, North American Challengers League Summer 2024.
The team also left a mark in North American Challengers League Spring 2024 and League of Legends College Championship 2024, winning two silver medals.
“This is a big step for DarkZero — not only are we entering League of Legends for the first time, but also stepping into the collegiate scene in a meaningful way,” the team said in the announcement.
“With the recent introduction of LTA promotion, we have a perfect opportunity to work together in pushing the program forward for a chance to qualify for LTA 2026.”
DarkZero Esports will debut in the LoL esports scene on Thursday, March 27, in the first round of NACL Split 1 2025, when they’ll face off against Pulse Star.
DarkZero signing an NACL team is the second major development in North America’s second-division league after Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng’s Near Airport team secured their spot in the competition through qualifiers.
DarkZero Dragonsteel enter NACL 2025 Split 1 priced at +250 in title odds on the best LoL betting sites, behind Near Airport (+200) and ahead of Luminosity Gaming (+300).
