Karel "Flickless" Maeckelbergh and Eduard-George "ara" Hanceriuc have reached a verbal agreement with GIANTX to join the team for the next VCT EMEA split, according to Sheep Esports sources. The two players already competed in the final two matches of VCT EMEA Stage 1 with GIANTX, after the team decided to sideline Tomás "tomaszy" Machado and Emil "runneR" Trajkovski. Flickless and Ara are stepping up to Tier 1 VALORANT from the Spanish VCL, where they played for UCAM Esports Club—GX’s partner team in the VCT Partnership Programme—competing in Challengers Spain.

A change in hopes of better results

2025 has been anything but easy for GIANTX. After a rocky start in the VCT 2025: EMEA Kickoff—where they fell to BBL Esports in the Upper Bracket Round 1, bounced back with a win over Karmine Corp in the Lower Bracket, only to be eliminated by Team Liquid—the team struggled to find momentum in Stage 1. In the Omega group, they suffered back-to-back losses against Vitality, Heretics, and NAVI. Ahead of their match against Fnatic, the team made roster changes, but despite a close 2-1 series, they couldn’t secure the win. A final victory over Apeks brought a glimpse of hope, but it wasn’t enough to qualify for Playoffs.

Despite the loss and early elimination, the two young players impressed with their performances—enough to convince GIANTX to retain them for the rest of the year. As a result, they won’t be competing in VALORANT Challengers 2025 EMEA: Stage 2 with UCAM, who will now need to find two replacements. For GIANTX, the next major event on the calendar is the Esports World Cup Qualifier, expected to take place around mid-May, according to sources.