Sources: SK Gaming to rebuild around SlowQ for 2027

SK Gaming are preparing to rebuild almost their entire League of Legends roster for 2027, with midlaner Seo “” Ye-bit expected to be the only player retained, according to information obtained by Sheep Esports. Although SlowQ remains under contract, SK Gaming intend to keep him for next season and have no plans to sell his contract.

The contracts of all four other players on SK Gaming's 2026 roster expire this year, but the organisation has yet to re-sign any of them. While SK Gaming intend to part ways with some of their current players, others are looking to explore their options with other teams.

The potential overhaul follows a familiar pattern for SK Gaming, who have made significant changes to their lineup in almost every offseason since 2023. The contracts of Skeanz, Wunder, Jopa and Mikyx all expire on November 16, 2026, giving the organisation a largely clean slate heading into next season. SlowQ, by contrast, is under contract until November 2027. The organization has already entered discussions with new players in those respective positions.

2026 was another difficult season for SK. They finished second to last at LEC Versus and then failed to reach the playoffs again in the Spring Split, following a 2025 campaign that was just as disappointing. The organisation had hoped for a more stable identity after a difficult intersplit, but results did not follow.

What set this year apart was the number of experiments. SK brought in Mikyx as their headline signing and gave him a large say in building the roster. The former G2 and Fnatic support was expected to shape the team’s direction, and the decision to pair him with Adam "LIDER" Ilyasov in the midlane was a central part of that plan. When SK benched LIDER and turned to SlowQ, it was clear the project had not delivered what the organisation hoped for.

The move to Cologne from Berlin was another sign of change. The organisation relocated its operations ahead of 2026, a shift that came alongside new faces across the roster and a new coaching setup built around head coach David “OWN3R” Rodriguez de la Torre. But these did not prevent the roster from making a second year without any playoff qualification.

SlowQ’s path to SK was a fast one. He joined the main roster in July 2026, replacing Adam “LIDER” Ilyasov in the midlane. Before that, he had been one of the most consistent performers in the European regional scene, sweeping the TCL and LFL and winning EMEA Masters 2025 Summer under the Karmine Corp banner.

His arrival was meant to bring stability. SK had failed to reach the LEC playoffs in both the Versus and Spring splits, and the midlane had been one of the weak spots. Skeanz himself has credited SlowQ with calming the team, saying the squad played with more freedom and that the two clicked in both mentality and how they read the game.

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