2026 VCT Rostermania: Tier 1 VALORANT Roster Moves

As the VALORANT esports circuit progresses toward the OFF//SEASON, various VCT teams have commenced alterations to their lineups as they prepare for the 2026 season.

Certain teams are only swapping out a small number of players, while others are opting to completely overhaul their roster, which incorporates onboarding new coaching personnel too.

Esports Insider is diligently monitoring VCT rostermania and has documented each roster transaction below across all participating International Leagues.

Disclaimer: As the off-season progresses, Esports Insider will update this article whenever new roster changes are officially verified. First published: Spetember 30th, 2025

Leviatán secured third position at the VALORANT Champions 2024 tournament; however, they were unsuccessful in qualifying for any international VCT events during this year, which has prompted the organisation to implement adjustments.

Consequently, three players, namely Ian ‘tex‘ Botsch, Corbin ‘C0M‘ Lee, and Anthony ‘okeanos‘ Nguyen, have been granted permission to explore alternate prospects for the 2026 VCT season as their respective contracts will expire at the conclusion of 2025.

Casper ‘Desmo‘ Rasmussen, the roster’s Head Coach, has been transitioned to an inactive role, and the Assistant Coach meco1e has departed from the coaching team. As of the time this is being written, there have been no substantiated additions.

While Davi ‘Palla‘ Alcides and Olavo ‘heat‘ Marcelo are still bound by their contracts with FURIA, they have been relieved from the active line-up in the wake of one of the most underwhelming performances observed among all VCT Americas teams in 2025. No further updates have been issued by FURIA concerning potential new members.

It has marked two years since 100 Thieves last featured at the VALORANT Champions event, and despite the team demonstrating a promising initiation in 2025, they were unable to sustain the positive impetus throughout the remainder of the season.

100 Thieves has accordingly declared a comprehensive roster restructuring, thereby empowering every member of the team to explore prospective opportunities as the organisation re-evaluates its prospective strategies.

Marco ‘Melser‘ Machuca, Angelo ‘keznit‘ Mori and Fabian ‘Shyy‘ Usnayo’s contracts are scheduled to lapse at the end of 2025, and all of them are receptive to fresh opportunities. The team’s Head Coach, Jorge ‘Atom‘ Noriega, and Strategic Coach, Alan ‘ddx‘ Salvati, are encountering an identical circumstance as well.

All other VCT Americas teams have yet to announce any roster changes.

Leo ‘Leo‘ Jannesson, a highly influential player within the VALORANT sphere, has made the decision to retire from gameplay due to unrevealed health concerns. The player had not resumed his position within the active roster since June 2024 and is now officially disassociated with the organisation.

In spite of achieving fourth position in EMEA Stage 1 and third position in Stage 2, BBL Esports was unsuccessful in securing a spot for Champions Paris due to their inability to accrue a sufficient number of Championship Points.

Consequently, Martin ‘Magnum‘ Peňkov is presently in pursuit of a new team; nevertheless, he is still undergoing negotiations with the organisation. The roster’s Analyst, Dario ‘ZaeS‘ Gomez, conversely, is now designated as a free agent.

Kyrylo ‘ANGE1‘ Karasov has opted to discontinue his career as a competitive VALORANT player, thereby marking the conclusion of a five-year tenure in the game. Nonetheless, he intends to integrate into a team as a coach in the upcoming year.

Mehmet ‘cNed‘ İpek’s contract is due to expire at the cessation of 2025, and he is now evaluating his alternatives for 2026. FUT Esports did not succeed in participating in any international VCT events during the current year, and the organisation is in the process of determining its future approaches for the roster.

Artur ‘pyrolll‘ Minin became a part of Karmine Corp prior to VCT EMEA Stage 2, but the team was unable to qualify for Champions Paris. Consequently, he is receptive to propositions from other teams, while concurrently remaining under contract with the organisation.

Riot Games has formally announced that KOI will not be recognised as a VCT partner team commencing in 2026, attributing the decision to “inconsistent performance and failure to meet certain obligations”. In response to this determination, the roster was disbanded effective immediately, as was communicated by the organisation’s CEO, Adam Adamou.

All other VCT EMEA teams have yet to announce any roster changes.

ZETA DIVISION has initiated the application process for its 2026 VCT roster to onboard new players, coaches, and analysts. A few days subsequently, Kim ‘TenTen‘ Tae-young and Hikaru ‘CLZ‘ Mizutani communicated their status as restricted agents, and the team’s Assistant Coach, Carlos ‘Carlão‘ Mohn, has officially severed ties with the roster.

DetonatioN FocusMe’s IGL, Koki ‘Art‘ Kagami, has departed from the team following a period of nearly a year. While the team exhibited moderate improvement during the 2025 VCT season, their progress was not sufficient to guarantee participation in an international VCT event post-2023.

All other VCT Pacific teams have yet to announce any roster changes.

Wendler joined JD Gaming preceding VCT China Stage 2 in the capacity of an Assistant Coach. Nevertheless, in the aftermath of the team’s season culmination featuring only a solitary series victory, both Wendler and the organisation have “mutually parted ways.”

TYLOO manifested noteworthy enhancement in China Stage 2, having advanced to the second round of playoffs. Nonetheless, the team still failed to attain sufficient overall Championship Points rankings. Looking ahead, and with the objective of improvement, the organisation has formally inducted Moses ‘Splash‘ Jonathan into its roster.

Wolves Esports’ remarkable performance at Masters Toronto took many people by surprise. However, the team was unable to prolong the momentum generated on the international stage.

Consequently, the organisation has permitted Huang ‘Yuicaw‘ Yung-chieh and Tyler ‘juicy‘ Aeria to explore fresh avenues as they prepare for the 2026 VCT season. Currently, the team is actively seeking to onboard a support player from an alternate region before the formal commencement of Off//Season.

All other VCT China teams have yet to announce any roster changes.