Ex-Sentinels Valorant coach SyykoNT joins M80 as VP of Esports

Former Sentinels Valorant head coach Donald ‘SyykoNT’ Muir is joining M80 at an executive level as the esports organization’s new Vice President of Esports.

SyykoNT has been a fixture in North American Valorant almost since the title was released, first with smaller teams, like Sedated, before heading XSET and eventually Sentinels.

SyykoNT helped lead XSET to two international tournaments in 2022 and joined Sentinels for the 2023 season. He was released from Sentinels on April 18 after the squad started the VCT Americas split with a disappointing 1-2 record. Since then, SyykoNT has appeared on the North America Challengers League broadcasts as an analyst.

Now, SyykoNT is taking his talents behind the scenes as M80 has announced SykkoNT as its new VP of Esports.

“Don has a rich track record building and leading championship-caliber esports teams, and his addition to M80 will ensure our continued competitive dominance,” Marco Mereu, the CEO and co-founder of M80, said in a press release.

SyykoNT joins up with M80 in executive role

In M80, SyykoNT will reunite with Mereu, who co-founded XSET and was the organization’s COO until the summer of 2022. Mereu played a part in SyykoNT’s hiring by XSET in 2020, and he is now looking to make full use of the coach’s knack for building competitive rosters.

“M80 is approaching pivotal moments across its teams and my sights are set on nothing but setting our squads up for success,” SyykoNT said.

Even with this move to a more general management-type role, SykkoNT isn’t closing the door on future coaching jobs.

“I’ve greatly enjoyed my time as a coach over the years, so I haven’t fully closed the door on it,” he said. “However, I’m excited to take the skills I’ve developed during my time coaching into this new VP of Esports position and utilize them to support M80’s teams, scout rising talent, and build new programs in promising titles.”

M80’s Valorant squad recently qualified for the Americas Ascension tournament and is set to battle against five other teams in Brazil for a two-year stint in VCT Americas. The esports organization also fields teams in Rocket League and Rainbow Six: Siege and sponsors a Street Fighter player.