G2 Hel appoints Veteran as head coach amid staff shake-up

Much like its LEC counterpart, G2 Hel has elected to make sweeping changes to its coaching staff, replacing it almost entirely over the past few weeks. As part of the overhaul, long-time content creator and streamer, as well as former EU LCS coach, Michael "Veteran" Archer has been appointed head coach. For the time being, he will serve as the organization's sole member of the coaching staff.

The team was previously led by Adam "Emtest" Emtestam, who had served as head coach for more than two years, alongside assistant coach Nicolai-Daniel "Chrislai" Uwadia. However, after a disappointing start to the 2026 season, G2 Hel opted to make changes in hopes of climbing back up the standings.

Coming into the year, the squad was expected to at least secure a top-four finish, with many expecting it to challenge for an even higher position. Instead, G2 Hel has found itself outside those expectations, prompting the organization to rethink its approach with only two stages remaining.

An organization known for its historical dominance in the scene, G2 Hel has struggled to live up to expectations so far in 2026. Despite securing a second-place finish in the League of Legends Game Changers: Rising 2026 Stage 1, the squad’s performance continued to decline as the weeks went by. With only two stages remaining and the team barely holding onto fifth place in circuit points following back-to-back sixth- and seventh-place finishes, G2 Hel has now decided that changes could no longer be avoided.

According to sources, however, the move does not come as a surprise, as relations between some players and Emtest had already deteriorated over the past few weeks. The two parties ultimately parted ways after reaching an agreement that they had different visions for the future direction of the project. Veteran’s arrival also comes after he was personally vouched for by members of the team and, according to sources, had already been involved behind the scenes since the previous LGC stage, where G2 Hel finished seventh.

For now, it remains too early to determine whether this change will be the turning point G2 Hel needs, as the team has shown major issues across multiple areas throughout the 2026 season.

Much like G2 recently faced criticism following the appointment of Luka "Perkz" Perković to its LEC roster over past alleged endorsements of controversial figures, including Andrew Tate, the arrival of Veteran has also sparked discussion on social media, albeit for different reasons.

Having not held an official coaching position for approximately eight years, Veteran has faced criticism over past tweets and comments regarding Islam, the Middle East, and other controversial topics. Most of these posts date back to 2013–2014, though some comments — which have since been deleted — have reportedly been attributed to him as recently as 2022.

Regardless, G2 Hel now finds itself in a difficult position, especially in the Equal Esports Cup Playoffs, where the team was swept 0-2 by Vitality Rising Bees on the same day as Veteran’s announcement. The result sent G2 Hel to the lower bracket, where it will face SK Avarosa with its tournament run on the line. The team will play another best-of-three tomorrow to determine whether it can continue its run, before returning to the LGC Stage 4 on August 22.