| Vikings Esports | |
| City: | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam |
| Gm: | Nguyễn "Grandon" Vũ Đôn |
| Coach: | Nguyễn "Ren" Văn Trọng |
| Game: | League of Legends |
Vikings Esports is a Vietnamese professional League of Legends team competing in the Vietnam Championship Series (VCS). It was founded in 2016 as Young Generation. The team was crowned VCS champions twice, and qualified for the World Championship in 2017,[1] 2018,[2] and 2022,[3] as well as the Mid-Season Invitational in 2019 and 2022. Vikings Gaming acquired and rebranded the team from Saigon Buffalo to Viking Esports in 2023.
On 18 May 2018, Young Generation rebranded to Phong Vũ Buffalo after agreeing to a sponsorship deal with Phong Vũ, a major computer company in Vietnam. The team dominated in its first split in the VCS, losing only one series to EVOS Esports and one to GIGABYTE Marines, ending with a series record of 12 wins and 2 losses in the 2018 VCS Summer Split. This placement secured them a spot in finals of the VCS 2018 Summer Playoffs, where they defeated Cube Adonis 3–1 and qualified for the 2018 World Championship.[4] [5]
Because of EVOS Esports' placement at the 2018 Mid-Season Invitational, Vietnam was given a spot in the main event at the 2018 League of Legends World Championship,[6] allowing Phong Vũ Buffalo to avoid the need to qualify through the play-in stage. For the group stage, Phong Vũ Buffalo was drawn into Group A, along with the Afreeca Freecs, the Flash Wolves, and G2 Esports.[7] The team ended the group stage with 2 win and 4 losses, failing to qualify for the knockout stage.[8]
Phong Vũ Buffalo placed 1st in the 2019 VCS Spring Split regular season, with a record of 13 wins and 1 loss. This directly qualified the team for the finals, where they defeated EVOS Esports 3–1 to qualify for the 2019 Mid-Season Invitational as Vietnam's representative.
Phong Vũ Buffalo was placed in Group A of the first round of the 2019 Mid-Season Invitational play-in stage, along with Turkish team 1907 Fenerbahçe, Australian team Bombers, and Argentine team Isurus Gaming.[9] [10] The team ended the group round robin with a record of 4 wins and 2 losses, tying 1907 Fenerbahçe for 1st and forcing a tiebreaker match, which 1907 Fenerbahçe lost. Phong Vũ Buffalo's victory qualified them for the second round of the play-in stage,[11] where they lost 0–3 to Team Liquid.[12] This result forced Phong Vũ Buffalo to play in a third round against Vega Squadron, who they defeated 3–2 in a close series, securing themselves a spot in the main event.[13] Phong Vũ Buffalo placed last in the group stage of the main event with a 2–8 record, failing to advance to the knock-out stage.
On 31 May 2019, the organization announced it was renaming to Dashing Buffalo to reflect a change in its sponsorship, with Dashing Shampoo becoming its primary sponsor.[14]
Dashing Buffalo renamed to Saigon Buffalo on 26 May 2020 to reflect its partnership with the Saigon Heat.[15]
In November 2022, the South Korean esports-focused think tank JUEGO signed a deal to acquire Saigon Buffalo,[16] but the deal fell through.
Saigon Buffalo was renamed to Vikings Esports after the 2023 season.
| Placement | Event | Final result (W–L) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualified | VCS A 2017 Spring Promotion | 2–0 (against Cherry Gaming) | |
| 2nd | VCS A 2017 Spring | 10–2 | |
| 2nd | VCS A 2017 Spring Playoffs | 0–3 | |
| 2nd | VCS A 2017 Summer | 10–4 | |
| 2nd | VCS A 2017 Summer Playoffs | 0–3 | |
| 2nd | GPL 2017 Summer | 3–2 (against Ascension Gaming) | |
| 17th–20th | 2017 World Championship | 0–3 (against Team WE) | |
| 4th | VCS 2018 Spring | 8–6 | |
| 4th | VCS 2018 Spring Playoffs | 1–3 (against GIGABYTE Marines) | |
| 1st | VCS 2018 Summer | 12–2 | |
| 1st | VCS 2018 Summer Playoffs | 3–1 (against Cube Adonis) | |
| 13th–16th | 2018 World Championship | 2–4 | |
| 1st | VCS 2019 Spring | 13–1 | |
| 1st | VCS 2019 Spring Playoffs | 3–1 (against EVOS Esports) | |
| 6th | 2019 Mid-Season Invitational | 2–8 (main event) | |
| 3rd | Rift Rivals 2019 LCK-LPL-LMS-VCS | 0–3 (against LPL) | |
| 4th | VCS 2019 Summer | 8–6 | |
| 4th | VCS 2019 Summer Playoffs | 0–3 (against Lowkey Esports) | |
| 6th | VCS 2020 Spring | 5–9 | |
| 2nd | 2020 Pulsefire Cup | 1–3 (against GAM Esports) | |
| 7th | VCS 2020 Summer | 3–11 | |
| Qualified | VCS 2021 Spring Promotion | 3–1 (against V Gaming) | |
| 2nd | VCS 2021 Spring | 10–4 | |
| 2nd | VCS 2021 Spring Playoffs | 1–3 (against GAM Esports) | |
| 5th | VCS 2021 Winter | 6–8 | |
| 2nd | 31st SEA Games, Vietnam qualifier | 1–3 (against GAM Esports) | |
| 2nd | VCS 2022 Spring | 9–5 | |
| 2nd | VCS 2022 Spring Playoffs | 1–3 (against GAM Esports) | |
| 6th | 2022 Mid-Season Invitational | 2–8 | |
| 3rd | VCS 2022 Summer | 8–6 | |
| 2nd | VCS 2022 Summer Playoffs | 0–3 (against GAM Esports) | |
| 19–20th | 2022 World Championship | 1–3 (against MAD Lions) |