Spacestation Gaming have parted ways with João "
diaz" Henrique following the conclusion of
Rocket League 2026 World Championship. The Brazilian professional announced on twitter that he had entered free agency and was looking for opportunities in both Europe and South America. Diaz will be departing Spacestation Gaming after a highly successful ten-month period with the organizaton. In the announcement, diaz confirmed that he “wanted to stay” but the “VISA situation and other kinds of stuff” led to his departure. Spacestation Gaming CEO Shawn
“
Unit” Pellerin
cited in a follow-up post that the organization would have loved to continue with diaz heading into the RLCS Club Championship but that the “current VISA & Immigration situation in the US has never been more difficult”.
Diaz joined the organization in November 2025, linking up with Nicholas "
Chronic" Iwanski and Jack "
reveal" LeDuc for RLCS 2026. The team became an international force when Zachary
"zach" Stone returned from retirement to replace Chronic ahead of Split 2. They stunned the community with two second-place finishes at both the
Esports World Cup and 2026 World Championship to end the season, two events where diaz was making his debut. The 18-year-old played a key role in the young squad-s success, appearing at every single international LAN in RLCS 2026 and even earning a top-four finish at the 1v1 World Championship having qualified after winning the North American 1v1 Open.
With multiple
North American professionals entering free agency, including Angel "
kofyr" Lopez and the
entire Virtus.pro roster, Spacestation Gaming will now be assessing the market having enjoyed their most successful period during their eight-year history competing in Rocket League Esports. Before RLCS 2026, the organization’s highest placement at a World Championship came six years ago in RLCS Season 8, when the lineup of Caden
"Sypical" Pellegrin, Tshaka
"Arsenal" Lateef Taylor Jr, and Alexandre
"AxB" Bellemare reached the semi finals.
