While he had not appeared publicly on the competitive
League of Legends scene since 2022, Barney "
Alphari" Morris will be making his return to the
LEC. The former British toplaner who has played in both the LEC and LCS will become an assistant coach on the
Movistar KOI staff next season, sources tell
Sheep Esports. However, this will not be his first coaching experience.
He will join the staff led by Tomás "
Melzhet" Campelos. After
a respectable but incomplete run at Worlds this year, Movistar KOI is strengthening by adding the expertise of a former player to its coaching staff.
Movistar KOI won't be Alphari's first experience at coaching in the LEC. Last year, he worked with G2 Esports as a positional coach and helped Broken Blade step up in his laning phase.
While the
Movistar KOI team will remain the same for the year 2026, changes are expected in the coaching staff. As Quentin "
Zeph" Viguié's contract expires, a new member was expected to work alongside Melzhet. The Spanish team considered several profiles before selecting Alphari.
It is therefore Alphari who will finally take on this role and gain his first experience within the organization that won the spring split LEC 2025. A few other changes are expected on KOI's side during this offseason. The team wants to trust its players for the future and has even indicated that it has started discussions to extend the contracts of some players.