After this year with Gentle Mates, Martin "
marteen" Pátek is expected to leave the French organization to join Fnatic in 2027. According to sources close to
Sheep Esports, the Czech Duelist has reached a verbal agreement with the English club. The news follows
Sheep Esports'
recent report of a move in the opposite direction for Emir "Alfajer" Beder, who is expected to join M8 in 2027 after five years with Fnatic. Neither organization mentioned here is guaranteed to remain a VCT EMEA partner for the next two years.
With this likely addition, Fnatic is signing a top-performing player who set the record for the most kills in a best-of-five series this season and who had caught the eye of several teams across the four international VALORANT esports leagues, sources tell Sheep Esports.
During
an X Space in early September 2026, Team Director Colin "
CoJo" Johnson discussed
the contractual situations of Jake "
Boaster" Howlett and Austin "
crashies" Roberts. Their contracts are all set to expire next November, meaning the three players should be able to consider other opportunities as the offseason progresses. Kajetan "
kaajak" Haremski and Kirill "
Cloud" Nekhozhin, meanwhile, have contracts that run through the end of 2028.
According to sources who spoke to Sheep Esports, Fnatic are prepared to be one of the higher-spending teams in terms of their roster for the upcoming VALORANT EMEA season.
Ups and downs
Gentle Mates' 2026 campaign was defined by a strong start before gradually becoming more complicated. First, the organization entered the VCT EMEA circuit
at the last minute after Riot Games ended its partnership with KOI, leaving M8 with limited time to assemble its roster. Despite those circumstances, the French team immediately made an impact, with a second-place finish at Kickoff securing a European seed for Masters Santiago, marking Gentle Mates' first-ever appearance at an international
VALORANT LAN. The team also advanced from the group stage in Chile, but its tournament came to an end in the playoffs following back-to-back losses to Nongshim RedForce in the upper bracket and All Gamers in the lower bracket.
The momentum did not carry into the rest of the season, with M8 finishing 5th-6th in VCT EMEA Stage 1 before reaching the Esports World Cup playoffs and placing 5th-6th again in Paris despite a roster change. Stage 2 proved even more challenging, as Gentle Mates closed its VCT EMEA campaign in 13th-16th place. The offseason looks like a complete reset for the French club, as only Yusuf Emre "Proxh" Tunc is currently contracted for 2027, with several players, including in-game leader Patryk "starxo" Kopczyński, open to other opportunities, and now marteen is also set to leave.
A significant step back
For Fnatic, 2026 represented a significant step back compared with the organization's results in previous seasons. The English organization had reached international finals at both Masters Toronto and Champions Paris in 2025, while also finishing second at the Esports World Cup. A year later, Fnatic struggled to reproduce those results, with the departure of long-time player Timofey "
Chronicle" Khromov, changes to the coaching staff during the year,
and Sylvain "Veqaj" Pattyn's health issues all contributing to a turbulent campaign. After finishing in the Top 4 at Kickoff and falling short of Masters Santiago qualification against Gentle Mates and Team Liquid, the team entered the next stage without the same momentum.
Fnatic nevertheless started VCT EMEA Stage 1 in convincing fashion, winning all five of its group-stage matches and earning direct passage to the second round of the playoffs. The run ended soon after, however, as the Black & Orange were beaten by Team Vitality in the upper bracket before losing to Team Heretics in the following match. The team subsequently failed to qualify for the Esports World Cup and entered Stage 2 in a difficult position.
With only two wins from five group-stage matches, Fnatic was forced into the first round of the Play-In, a new VCT made only for 2026. This new stage then put Fnatic up against opposition from the Tier 2 ecosystem, with Enterprise Esports handing the organization a defeat in its opening Play-In match, sending FNC into the lower bracket. Fnatic stayed alive by overcoming GIANTX, but its run ended in the next round against Joblife. The multiple-time European champions have therefore been eliminated from VCT EMEA Stage 2, missing Champions for the first time in their history.
