Rw9, Vatira, and nass nominated for Esports Controller Player of the Year 2026

The Esports Awards have released the full list of nominations for the 2026 edition of the awards, with the ceremony expected to take place in Miami on November 17. Three players from Rocket League have been nominated for the Esports Awards Controller Player of the Year, including Gentle Mates professional Nassim "nass" Bali, Karmine Corp veteran Axel "Vatira" Touret and World Champion with Team Falcons Saleh Abdullah "Rw9" Bakhashwin. A player from Rocket League has never won the award but Evan "M0nkey M00n" Rogez came closest when he was awarded a deserved Controller Rookie of the Year award in 2021. The Gentle Mates Boston Major winning roster has been nominated for Esports Team of the Year, alongside our World Champions Team Falcons, who won the RLCS 2026 World Championship and the Esports World Cup at the end of the season.

A number of other notable community members were nominated for this year’s awards. Joey "Jorby" Ahrens was nominated for Play-by-Play Caster of the Year, Sean "Stax" Stackhouse was nominated for Host of the Year, Tyler "TBates" Bates was nominated for Analyst of the Year, while finally James "Jamesbot" Villar and Cameron "CJCJ" Johns were both nominated for Colour Caster of the Year. Caleb "WavePunk" Simmons was the last member of the Rocket League talent to win, having been awarded Host of the Year in 2023.

Rocket Baguette, who are endemic to the esport and have been covering Rocket League events from a social media, streaming, and content perspective for 10 years, were nominated for Content Group of the Year for the first time. They will be competing with household brands like 100 Thieves, Optic Gaming and G2 Esports. Liquipedia, which has been covering Rocket League since its inception and has won two awards previously, has been nominated for Supporting Service of the Year.

The game itself sits alongside a multitude of other titles who received nominations for the Esports Game of the Year, an award Rocket League has never won. BLAST, the tournament organizer who currently manages the RLCS, has been nominated for Tournament Organiser of the Year. Organizations like Gentle Mates, Team Vitality, NRG, Karmine Corp, Virtus.pro, and Team Falcons, who all currently compete in the esport, have been nominated for multiple awards.

The Gentle Mates Boston Major winning roster has been nominated for Esports Team of the Year, alongside our World Champions Team Falcons, who won the RLCS 2026 World Championship and the Esports World Cup at the end of the year.