Realistically speaking, which one of KC +zen / VIT +Atow is the most likely outcome?
Obviously that's been a debate for quite some time now, especially after Worlds 2025 with zen failing to make playoffs and KC getting knocked out in semis yet again. Now obviously, both team's upcoming Worlds result will have a significant impact on wether or not either move will happen, but i'm gonna be focusing on the current state of things for now
I think there are a lot of factors to consider going into this debate:
First, I went for +Atow and not +vatira, In part because of Atow teaming up with zen in 2s, which has showcased how absolutely dominant their partnership can be, but also because I don't see vatira leave the team at all in the near future. And I don't even say that out of favoritism, this guy has been the face of Karmine for 4 seasons now.
However, the same could be said for zen and Vitality. Obviously he's the best player to ever play the game so far, and it's fair to say Vitality definitely don't want him gone. The way I see it is, it's been a while since he won any significant tournament with them, which might weigh on him. Not that he has anything to prove anymore, but the lack of club trophies since 2023 despite all the changes might be a legitimate reason to leave. We also can't ignore the memes and criticism around his teammates; I can't remember how many 1v3 comments I saw whenever Vitality was not performing enough, justified or not. But at the end of the day, just like how vatira is the face of KC, zen is the face of Vitality and he himself may not rush to the exit just yet.
Then comes the hard question: can either team afford those moves? It shouldn't be a problem for Vitality, but KC is definitely in trouble on that point. They signed dralii before by lowering Atow and vatira's salaries, but is zen's price tag cheap enough for this method to be employed again? Hard to say. Not only that but IIRC, zen is still under contract with the beehive until 2027.
But what do you guys think?