The 2025-26 VALORANT offseason roster shuffle sent shockwaves across the VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT), with surprise moves and aggressive rebuilds disrupting the entire circuit. From newly formed superteams to established powerhouses tearing down their cores, this Rostermania was easily the most explosive yet.
This guide breaks down some of the biggest VALORANT roster moves in the 2025-26 offseason, highlighting the most promising pickups and rebuilds at the start of the VCT 2026 competitive season.
#1. Zekken, Mazino & Tex Join Aspas On MIBR
MIBR made one of the most impactful roster moves in VCT by signing proven stars zekken, Mazino, and tex. This trio immediately raises the team’s ceiling and rightfully justifies its new “superteam” label.
The headline acquisition, Filipino-American superstar zekken, joins after a lengthy three-year run with Sentinels, and is widely regarded as one of NA’s most promising young duelists. Beyond his championship-caliber plays, zekken brings relentless entry pressure and elite mechanical firepower to an already formidable lineup.
Alongside the experience and stability provided by Mazino and tex, the pairing of zekken and aspas (2025 VCT Americas Player of the Year and Best Duelist of the Year) gives MIBR a duel-threat entry presence and makes them one of the most dangerous rosters in VCT Americas. At the time of writing, they sit comfortably in the Upper Finals to face off against FURIA of all teams to lock in their spot for Masters Santiago.
MIBR roster:
- Erick “aspas” Santos
- Andrew “Verno” Maust (IGL)
- Roberto “Mazino” Bugueño
- Ian “tex” Botsch
- Zachary “zekken” Patrone
- Daniel “fRoD” Montaner (Coach)
#2. Chronicle & Jamppi Complete Team Vitality Superteam
Team Vitality’s offseason roster shuffle immediately grabbed headlines, with the club snatching yet another FNATIC player, Chronicle.
While his reunion with Derke will instantly set high expectations for the team, the addition of Jamppi from BBL Esports injects even more pace and aggression. That combo, backed by prodigy Sayonara and PROFEK’s utility discipline, gives Vitality a strong balance that few teams can match.
An ambitious move for Vitality, no doubt, as they enter VCT 2026 as a clear threat. This sentiment applies not only in EMEA but also on the international stage, where they have built a true powerhouse stacked to the brim with exceptional talent. As of today they haven’t managed to qualify for Santiago just yet as they were pipped to the post in the middle bracket by Chron and Derke’s old home, Fnatic.
Team Vitality roster:
- Nikita “Derke” Sirmitev
- Ștefan “Sayonara” Mîtcu
- Timofey “Chronicle” Khromov
- Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen (IGL)
- Dawid “PROFEK” Święć
- Gregor “PAL” Morton (Coach)
#3. Sentinels Poach Cortezia From MIBR
After a disappointing performance last year that ended with early exits at VALORANT Masters Bangkok, Masters Toronto, and Champions Paris, Sentinels opted for a hard reset heading into VCT 2026.
The departure of proven talent like Zellsis, zekken, and bang strips much of the team’s experience, leaving only IGL johnqt and initiator N4RRATE as the only holdovers. Replacing them are Kyu and Reduxx from Cubert Academy, the latter of whom has deep shoes to fill following zekken’s departure as the team’s main duelist.
While the acquisition of Brazilian sensation cortezia from MIBR inspires hope, the Sentinels’ new roster looks risky, but not without some upside potential. The team is a great look for the VCT Path to Pro, having brough up their academy talents, but internationals is not on their horizon just yet, as the team struggled to perform in Americas Kick Off.
Sentinels roster:
- Mohamed “johnqt” Ouarid
- Marshall “N4RRATE” Massey
- Gabriel “cortezia” Cortez
- Mirel “Kyu” Hrustemovic (IGL)
- Yassin “reduxx” Aboulalazm
- Adam “kaplan” Kaplan (Coach)
#4. KRÜ Esports Revamps Entire VCT Roster
KRÜ Esports made waves by announcing a total overhaul of its active roster, with Dantedeu5 as the exception.
Leading the team, the club brought in Argentinian superstar Saadhak, a decorated veteran and former world champion with a proven track record. He is supported by a trusted Brazilian core of Less—one of the best flex defenders—and mechanical prodigy mwzera, alongside rising stars Dantedeu5 and silentzz.
Unfortunately, visa issues for the entire team spelled disaster at VCT 2026: Americas Kickoff, leading the club to field a last-minute substitute team. That setback aside, the roster still carries the firepower and structure to pull major upsets on the international stage… once the team is able to fully assemble.
KRÜ Esports roster:
- Jesús “Dantedeu5” Larrosa
- Felipe “Less” Basso
- Leonardo “mwzera” Serrati
- Matias “Saadhak” Delipetro (IGL)
- Caio “silentzz” Morita
- Nicolas “ZONYK” Carboni (Coach)
#5. Babybay Replaces JonahP On G2 Esports Active Roster
G2 Esports’ offseason roster shuffle became one of the most polarizing topics of conversation in VALORANT. After dominating in the Americas by clinching 1st place at Kickoff, Stage 1, and Stage 2, the club opted to bench JonahP in favor of babybay, who previously served as the team’s stand-in.
While the move has been criticized as a downgrade in synergy and, at best, a lateral shift in raw skill level, the logic is clear: G2 is trying to build a faster, more explosive lineup. JonahP was widely regarded as the connective tissue of the team’s macro-heavy system, but babybay has shown flashes of brilliance in Tier 1 play.
Despite JonahP’s shift to the inactive roster, the team has retained its most vital pillars, including IGL valyn, fragging machine trent, and world-class Sentinel player leaf, who provides much-needed flexibility to support the team.
On paper, G2 is a top-three team in the Americas, though not nearly as unstoppable as they were last year, with the swap feeling more like a gamble on volatility over stability. Most, after last year’s success, would expect them to be facing MIBR in the upper bracket, but instead, they’ve fought their way to the Middle Final after besting the Champions winners, NRG.
G2 Esports roster:
- Trent “trent” Cairns
- Jacob “valyn” Batio (IGL)
- Nathan “leaf” Orf
- Alexander “jawgemo” Mor
- Andrej “babybay” Francisty
- Josh “JoshRT” Lee (Coach)
Honorable Mention: Gentle Mates Replace KOI In VCT EMEA
On Oct. 7, 2025, Riot issued a statement on X, confirming that Gentle Mates had been selected to fill the vacant slot for the VCT 2026 EMEA season.
Earlier, the company said it ended its partnership with Movistar KOI due to a “breach of the team’s contractual agreement,” following significant internal financial challenges and a merger fallout with Rogue, which led to organizational downsizing.
Despite being relegated from the league just weeks prior, Gentle Mates outperformed competitors for the bid. They later overhauled their French core with domestic talent, adding rookies bipo and GLYPH, alongside veteran marteen and 2021 world champion starxo, in an effort to remain competitive in 2026. From relegated to fighting for the #1 seed in Kickoff against BBL, this year’s Gentle Mates are a whole new beast.
Gentle Mates roster:
- Patrik “Minny” Hušek
- Taranvir “bipo” Singh
- Conn “GLYPH” Garcia
- Martin “marteen” Pátek
- Patryk “starxo” Kopczyński (IGL)
- Pavle “pakko” Kostić (Coach)
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