A bombshell roster change has emerged ahead of the start of
VALORANT Champions.
Team Liquid, the EMEA region's second seed, have made a roster change before the beginning of the competition. Ognjen "
GSR" Bondžić, who has been a member of the organization's academy team this season, will join the main roster and replace Semyon "
purp0" Borchev, as Team Liquid announced on social media on Wednesday.
The decision came as a surprise, with Team Liquid having recently reached the
VCT EMEA Stage 2 final to qualify for Champions. After losing 3-1 to
Karmine Corp, the team was still set to travel to Shanghai and face
Paper Rex in their opening match of the competition. After playing the entire season with TL, however, purp0 has been dropped in favor of a promising player from the organization's academy.
GSR began his professional career with Team Liquid's academy in 2025. Last month, the player turned 18, making him eligible to play VCT matches, including Champions in China, where age regulations are particularly strict. Despite this, he currently has no Tier 1 experience and will therefore join the team to compete directly at the highest level.
A controversial decision
In response to his team's announcement, Team Liquid Head Coach Ivo "LohaN" Albino spoke out on X, taking full responsibility for the decision even as fans and observers questioned the timing of the change. "This was the hardest decision I ever had to make as coach. I understand it was an unfair decision and, at the end of the day, Semyon deserved to be in champs."
The decision does not appear to have gone down well with purp0, who also reacted to the announcement with a short message on X. "Shit happens, i deserve to play at Champions Shanghai but it is what it is." Finally, GSR, the roster's new addition who will now find himself under the spotlight, also spoke out on X, assuring fans that he would do his best to live up to the expectations placed on him by his team.
