“Teams have this notion that the perfect [in-game leader] will fix most of their issues, even though, in reality, it is most likely their system that is failing,” Hockom said. Organizations seeking a new in-game leader have three serious options: shell out for an expensive known quantity, cultivate young talent over a longer time frame, or recruit from overseas where prices may be lower. We can sense which way the winds are blowing: On Dec. 10, it was reported that the North American team 100 Thieves — among the best in the region — is trialing Adam “ec1s” Eccles, the former in-game leader of the European squad Ninjas in Pyjamas. In all likelihood, Eccles’s contract will cost less than that of 100 Thieves’s former in-game leader, Joshua “steel” Nissan, a former “Counter-Strike” pro and one of the best known in-game leaders in North America.