Sources: Guilhoto set to extend with GIANTX ahead of 2027 LEC Season

With two years under his belt, André "Guilhoto" Pereira Guilhoto is now set to make it a third and extend with ahead of the 2027 LEC Season, sources tell Sheep Esports. This move comes in a context where every single member of the team’s roster, as well as the large majority of its staff, are facing the end of their contracts with the organization.

Earlier this year, GIANTX surprised many by being one of the few teams to keep its entire roster going into the season, though this longevity was broken up by last summer’s toplane and AD Carry swaps. In 2027, the team will go through several changes, but Guilhoto will remain as one of their pillars.

Additionally, according to sources close to Sheep Esports, Guilhoto entered the offseason with two options in mind: re-signing with GX, his priority, or retiring from coaching. Although Fnatic reached out to GIANTX for André “Guilhoto” Pereira for a potential discussion as the offseason progressed, he did not pursue the opportunity and committed to GX. As part of the new agreement, Guilhoto is set to receive a salary increase and will be joined by two additional assistant coaches, with GX considering expanding its coaching staff around him.

With the Head Coach now confirmed, GX are hoping to secure their first players for 2027 soon, with an objective to reach the first signings over the next two weeks.

Throughout his tenure, Guilhoto has achieved relatively consistent results for GIANTX. Joining at the start of the 2025 season, he achieved three back-to-back fifth-place finishes that season, before this year scoring two fourth-place finishes, only blemished by a sixth-place finish in Summer. With this move, the organization seems to be trusting the Portuguese coach’s vision for the future, though who knows in what direction the team may go.

GIANTX’s approach to the offseason will also be interesting from a financial perspective. The organization was the third-lowest spender in Europe in early 2025 and has generally remained towards the lower end of the spending spectrum. For next year, it looks like GIANTX will remain in a rather conservative approach in terms of roster-spending.

A major shake-up is now likely, especially after a disappointing end to the Summer Split, which not only locked the Spanish organization out of Worlds 2026, but also out of the Demacia Cup as the last-placed team from the Summer Playoffs.

The roster itself could look very different heading into 2027. In January, support Yoon "Jun" Se-jun notably confided to Sheep Esports that he would most likely retire by the end of the season due to regulations in South Korea regarding mandatory military service. Ultimately, despite GIANTX wanting to keep him, he is now expected to join Team Heretics for 2027, as recently reported by our journalists.

In addition to losing its support, the Spanish club is also expected to part ways with its midlaner, who has been with the project for the past three years. Indeed, Jackies is also expected to join Team Heretics in 2027, sources told Sheep Esports recently. As reported in our recent article about the Czech player, GIANTX also wanted to keep him but was reportedly unable to do so, with Jackies notably attracted by the project TH is building for next season.

In the jungle, sources have told Sheep Esports in the past that GIANTX had previously explored bringing in while Guilhoto was already occupying the position of head coach, meaning the departure of . Razork is facing the end of his contract with , potentially clearing a path towards the team.

For now, Guilhoto provides GIANTX with one point of continuity ahead of what could be a major offseason, as the organization looks to finally turn its ambitions of competing at the top of the LEC into reality.