Sources: Netherlands appoints League of Legends roster for Esports Nations Cup

With just a few days remaining before the 2026 Esports Nations Cup qualifiers, the Netherlands are fully prepared to compete. Sitting on 1,000 points, the squad is expected to enter through the Europe West League of Legends qualifiers, scheduled to take place from June 19 to 21. At the helm, the team will operate under the guidance of Fayan “Gevous” Pertijs, a veteran of the ERL system and the Benelux region.

Although the Dutch have historically produced several notable talents for the LEC, their presence on the EMEA Masters stage has unfortunately faded in recent years. Today, the Benelux region is mostly regarded as one of the weaker ecosystems in the competitive landscape. However, the team could still spring a surprise, particularly as it features several high-profile players who once stood at the top of their respective roles.

The Netherlands’ lineup for the 2026 ENC, per Sheep Esports sources, will be as follows:

A first of its kind at the Esports Nations Cup, the Dutch delegation has effectively struck a three-for-one deal ahead of the Regional Qualifiers, albeit with a few caveats.

Originally, head coach Gevous had his sights set on one specific player, a man whose mechanics are as sharp as his briefcase; Alois. Now a well-known European streamer, many forget that the 25-year-old actually began his career as an aspiring professional player. Having spent much of his early development in the Benelux scene, he previously played under Defusekids and, for a time, even alongside Gevous himself, before eventually finishing his competitive journey in the Prime League with SK Gaming’s academy roster.

One issue quickly emerged, however: at the time of the regional qualifiers, scheduled between June 19 and 21, the Challenger-level content creator had already committed to a trip to South Korea, making him unavailable for competition.

With that option ruled out, Dan Dan emerged as a potential replacement, for qualifiers only. A former LEC player from 2019 to 2020, he has on multiple occasions proven himself as a strong individual talent, fully capable of holding his own. Unfortunately, two complications arose: first, Dan Dan has not competed professionally since late 2021, a nearly five-year absence, and second, he is currently contracted as a coach for , a team that has recently shaken up the EMEA ecosystem and is well on its way toward completing a dominant run through the region’s Tier 2 competitions.

Given these constraints, and the fact that Dan Dan, who is currently sitting at around 200 LP in solo queue, may not be available for the entirety of the qualifiers, a final solution emerged.

Peaking at 1,200 LP earlier this year, has recently established himself as one of the biggest revelations in the Benelux region in 2026. Freshly qualified for the region’s Tier 1 competition, he and his team, , secured both a second-place finish in winter and third place in spring, despite limited prior professional experience. Notably, this was achieved while competing on a part-time basis, as Bisk himself works full-time outside of gaming as a lawyer.

While having three toplaners is fine and dandy, it still takes four more players to complete a roster. Leaning into nostalgia, Febiven, who once pushed the world’s best to their limits under Fnatic, joins as midlaner. Like Dan Dan, his playing days are nevertheless largely behind him. Although he last competed in late 2024 in the LFL, he has since transitioned into content creation and now serves as a positional coach for in the LEC. Still, the former star midlaner peaked at around 1,880 LP in Challenger earlier this year, suggesting he has retained much of his mechanical skill, even if questions remain.

For the jungle role, emerges as the most sensible option. Former LEC player Thomas “Kirei” Yuen could also have constituted a solid option, especially given his consistent Challenger peaks even post-retirement, but Markoon stands out as one of the Benelux region’s strongest prospects. Now a key player for G2 NORD in the Prime League, he recently won the league and made back-to-back appearances at EMEA Masters, on top of carrying nearly four years of LEC experience and 2800 LP on EUW servers.

To round out the roster, , fresh off back-to-back titles in the Road of Legends with Frites Esports Club, will take on the support role. Having previously worked alongside Gevous, as well as Alois during his final competitive year in the Prime League, his inclusion in the lineup is a natural fit. Though he currently sits at around 1,200 LP in Masters, he remains a strong player and one of the region’s leading support talents.

However, the true wildcard of the roster is . A player who has never competed as an AD carry and has been a midlaner since 2017 in the ERLs, the 25-year-old will be making a first-ever role swap to the botlane. Recently, he helped secure back-to-back NLC titles and represented the Nordic region at EMEA Masters on two occasions, where he fell in Winter at the hands of G2 NORD, and Karmine Corp Blue in Spring.

Peaking at 1,400 LP this year, Furuy enters this new challenge with preparation behind him. Over the past few weeks, he has been training on a secondary account exclusively playing AD carry in solo queue. On that account, he currently sits at around Master 500 LP with an 80% win rate, though still within relatively low Master MMR. With Senna and Ashe as his most played champions, it appears he may lean toward a more utility-focused style in the botlane, though how he adapts in official competition remains to be seen.

While a direct invitation to the main event is not out of the question, the Netherlands’ most likely path to the 2026 ENC will be through the regional qualifiers. With no current LEC players on the roster, the squad unfortunately carries a relatively low points total, sitting at just 1,000, which would place them 24th according to the ENC prediction tool. This is further impacted by the inclusion of three retired players.

Nevertheless, the Dutch delegation looks, on paper, like a capable lineup built on strong individual talent, albeit with some rust to shake off.

The 2026 ENC Europe West qualifiers run from June 19 to 21, while the main event will take place in Riyadh from November 21 to 29, should the Netherlands qualify, a task that may prove challenging, particularly given the roster’s unusual toplane situation.