French esports organisation Gentle Mates has been crowned the champion of the Rocket league Championship Series (RLCS) Boston Major.
The team secured the lion’s share of its $354,000 (~£262,000) prize pool, alongside RLCS circuit ranking points, after defeating fellow French organisation Team Vitality 4-2 in the Grand Finals.
Gentle Mates was among a stacked 16-team line-up that competed in the Aggenis Arena in Boston, Massachusetts, US, from February 19th to 22nd, 2026. The team qualified through its performance in the three regional RLCS Opens, ranking second in Europe.
Gentle Mates began its RLCS Boston Major run in the Group Stage, which featured the likes of Shopify Rebellion, MIBR, and TSM. In the end, Gentle Mates topped the group with a 3-0 win/loss ratio, becoming one of eight teams to move on to the Playoffs.
Gentle Mates kickstarted the Playoffs with a narrow 4-3 series win against the 2025 RLCS World Championship winner, NRG. It then followed that up with another 4-3 series victory against Team Falcons in the Semi-Finals, successfully qualifying for the Grand Finals.
Gentle Mates claimed the first two maps in the Grand Finals, winning 3-1 on both Mannfield and Forbidden Temple. Team Vitality evened the score after winning 1-0 on DFH Stadium and 2-0 on Utopia Coliseum. However, Gentle Mates prevailed in the end, winning 5-1 on Parc de Paris and 6-2 on Neo Tokyo to win the series 4-2.
What’s Next After the Boston Major?
Following its win in the RLCS Boston Major, Gentle Mates has overtaken Karmine Corp in the Europe RLCS 2026 rankings. These rankings are significant because they decide which teams will qualify for the 2026 RLCS World Championships, the crowning event of the season.
With the Boston Major concluded, fans will now set their sights on the RLCS Paris Major taking place from May 20th to 24th, 2026. Teams will once again compete in three regional Opens to climb the rankings. The top 16 teams across the RLCS ecosystem will then gather in the Paris La Défense Arena, France.
