VCT EMEA Kickoff 2026: Fnatic without Chronicle and redemption for Team Vitality?

Following VALORANT Champions Paris and a busy Off//Season, VCT EMEA is set to return with its 2026 Kickoff event.

From January 20th until February 15th, 12 teams compete for the first regional trophy of the new season, as well as three spots at Masters Santiago, the first global VCT event of the year.

While the region will welcome back many familiar faces, new teams, rookies and international imports will make their debuts at Berlin’s Riot Games Arena. Moreover, former teammates have become rivals, and the partnered organisations will face off against two brand-new Ascension teams.

Before the action begins, Esports Insider has compiled the major storylines heading into VCT EMEA Kickoff 2026.

Throughout the VALORANT franchising era, Fnatic has consistently been one of EMEA’s strongest teams, lifting regional trophies and representing the region at numerous global events.

With its LOCK//IN São Paulo and Masters Tokyo trophies in 2023, the British esports organisation also made history by becoming the first VALORANT team to win back-to-back international titles.

Fnatic’s core, consisting of Emir ‘Alfajer‘ Beder, Nikita ‘Derke‘ Sirmitev, Timofey ‘Chronicle‘ Khromov and in-game leader (IGL) Jake ‘Boaster‘ Howlett, allowed the team to remain competitive despite the ever-changing metas and a rapidly increasing regional skill ceiling.

Although the roster lost its star duelist, Derke to Team Vitality last year, Fnatic was able to maintain its dominance in EMEA thanks to a clear team identity and a strong onboarding system.

As a result, even after a slow start to the 2025 season, Fnatic still claimed second-place finishes at both Masters Toronto and VALORANT Champions.

During the most recent Off//Season; however, Fnatic fans were shocked to see another veteran member depart, as Chronicle left the organisation to join Team Vitality. Chronicle had spent nearly three years with Fnatic and cemented himself as a high-fragging flex player and one of the most accomplished athletes in VALORANT esports history so far.

While his replacement, Sylvain ‘Veqaj‘ Pattyn, showed promising performance during the recent Off//Season events, the former Gentle Mates player is stepping into enormous shoes. Given Chronicle’s profound agent pool and ability to carry games with his raw fragging power, it is difficult not to view this change as a downgrade on paper.

On the flipside, this is an organisation that has thrived with young talent and even last-minute substitutes in the past. Moreover, two key pillars of the Fnatic’s success story, Boaster and Alfajer, remain in place, while last year’s additions, Austin ‘crashies‘ Roberts and Kajetan ‘kaajak‘ Haremski, have found their footing after a season of competing with the team.

It doesn’t look all doom and gloom for Fnatic, but this updated roster has a lot to prove heading into 2026 VCT season. 

Whilst Fnatic suffered a heavy loss during the most recent rostermania, EMEA rival Team Vitality emerged as one of the biggest winners of the Off/Season. 

In addition to reuniting former Fnatic stars Derke and Chronicle on its 2026 roster, the French organisation also recruited Dawid ‘PROFEK‘ Święć and IGL Elias ‘Jamppi‘ Olkkonen from BBL Esports. This star-studded line-up is supported by none other than coach Gregor ‘PAL‘ Morton, who, together with Jamppi, established himself as an innovative and reliable leader for BBL.

The resulting superteam has already set high expectations within the VCT EMEA community. However, this hype is tempered by caution, as Vitality has previously failed in generating results with a superteam before.

Last year’s roster leaned heavily on Derke’s star power, as well as former LOUD player and 2022 VALORANT Champion winner Felipe ‘Less‘ Basso. And after winning EMEA Kickoff 2025, the team looked ready to excel on the international stage.

Instead, Vitality soon had to learn the harsh lesson that big names alone are not enough to deliver consistent results. Following a fourth-place finish at Masters Bangkok, the roster began to crumble apart. A glaring lack of synergy and disagreements between players led to multiple mid-season roster changes and a disappointing end to the year.

In response to last year’s struggles, Vitality has now seemingly shifted its focus towards long-term stability by securing a strong coaching staff and high-value players who have already found joint success. Whether these adjustments will bear fruit remains to be seen at Kickoff and as the season progresses.

It is also worth noting that Vitality’s official fifth player, Ștefan ‘Sayonara‘ Mîtcu, is ineligible to compete until he turns 18 in March. Therefore, the team will likely rely on stand-in PROFEK until VCT EMEA Stage 1, which could lower the chances of it winning the upcoming Kickoff and Masters Santiago.

As an esports organisation founded by several French internet personalities, Gentle Mates attracted widespread attention after winning VCT EMEA Ascension 2023. 

The inaugural Ascension trophy guaranteed the organisation a place in tier-one VALORANT for two years, until Riot Games changed its relegation rules. To stay in VCT for another season, Gentle Mates needed to either qualify for Champions 2025 or reach the Stage 2 Playoffs and defend its slot in the next Ascension tournament.

The stakes were higher than ever for the organisation. However, despite a promising starting roster and smart mid-season adjustments, it finished at the bottom of EMEA Stage 2 Group Stage leaderboard and suffered direct relegation to tier-two. 

It was a bitter blow for an organisation that had been extremely dedicated to its VALORANT division. So how did Gentle Mates find its way back into VCT EMEA?

In September last year, former VCT partner team KOI was removed from the league due to ‘inconsistent performance and failure to meet certain obligations’. From several applicants, Riot Games chose Gentle Mates to take KOI’s slot until VCT’s first franchising period ends, and new contracts are established for 2027.

Another organisation’s misfortune has gifted the Gentle Mates another chance at tier-one, and based on the recent roster changes, the French side looks hungry to prove itself a worthy replacement. 

The only remaining player from last year’s roster is Patrik ‘Minny‘ Hušek, who made waves as a high-fragging IGL. To provide more room for Minny’s fragging potential, VALORANT veteran and inaugural Champions winner Patryk ‘starxo‘ Kopczyński has taken over the IGL duties.

The two are joined by former Karmine Corp duelist Martin ‘marteen‘ Pátek, alongside VCT rookies Conner ‘GLYPH‘ Garcia and Taranvir ‘bipo‘ Singh. Meanwhile, Pavle ‘pakko‘ Kostić and Jiri ‘KUNDIKUNDI‘ Honkala have been recruited as two diligent coaches from the tier-two scene. 

Whilst not the flashiest roster in the region, this iteration of Gentle Mates could spring a few upsets at VCT EMEA Kickoff 2026 and show consistent growth throughout the season.