Fnatic to Miss Valorant Masters London After Nightmare Playoffs

Fnatic’s roster will miss the Valorant Masters London following their VCT EMEA Stage 1 playoffs exit at the hands of Team Heretics.

The result denies Fnatic and Jake ‘Boaster’ Howlett the chance to play in front of a home crowd at London’s Copperbox Arena,

The classic series puts Fnatic in uncharted waters, missing their second international of the year for the first time in the organization’s history. Worst of all, it narrows their path to Valorant Champions 2026.

Team Heretics come up clutch against Fnatic

Following Team Vitality’s historic victory against Fnatic in the Upper Bracket, VCT EMEA’s most-celebrated roster had only one life left in the playoff bracket, requiring a clean run.

However, Team Heretics conjured some of their best form, combined with individual brilliance from Benjamin ‘benjyfishy’ Fish and series MVP Enes ‘RieNs’ Ecirli, to take the series 2-1, eliminating Fnatic from London contention.

The series was defined by clutch scenarios, especially on map 3 of Ascent. On Fnatic’s side, Emir ‘Alfajer’ Beder time and time again was keeping Fnatic in the series and in Masters London contention.

At 12-9 up, it seemed that Alfajer would essentially drag Fnatic past Team Heretics singlehandedly, but with three map and match points, Fnatic’s demons of EMEA Kickoff began to haunt them again.

Then, Gentle Mates had denied them a place at Masters Santiago from a 12-11 lead, after that Liquid fought back from 12-10 to deny Fnatic Abyss in the Lower Final.

Now, at 12-9, Fnatic got tight while Team Heretics continued to be at their expressive best, as they fought back to claim overtime.

While RieNs fought to put Heretics in that position, it was third-clutch lucky for RiÄardas ‘Boo’ LukaÅ¡eviÄius as the IGL delivered in a 1v2 clutch, with only two bullets left in his mag to close out the series 15-13 and eliminate Fnatic.

While it is a series that will be remembered for both individual brilliance and individual mistakes, what Fnatic truly suffered from in the VCT EMEA playoffs was beyond the individual. It was the price of a disrupted season.

Veqaj expresses guilt over Fnatic exit

Ultimately, what has underlined Fnatic for so many years in Valorant is their incredible teamplay, protocols, and control of maps and situations. Against Team Heretics, the series became a total brawl, with no control to speak of on either side.

For Team Heretics, chaos is where they have always thrived, but for Fnatic the reason for their lack of control is clear.

Sylvain ‘Veqaj’ Pattyn’s absence due to health issues interrupted Fnatic’s up til then flawless season. The player was then officially benched, with Clément ‘CyvOph’ Millard joining for the last group stage game of the season and the playoffs.

There is no question of moral culpability, as health should always come first, but for Fnatic the timing was extremely unfortunate.

CyvOph helped Fnatic to deliver a 5-0 Group Stage record, but playoff Valorant is a different beast, and with so little time to work out protocols, positions, and player synergy, Fnatic looked disconnected against Team Heretics.

The most bitter pill to swallow will be how good Fnatic were looking with Veqaj prior to his unfortunate health issues. The Frenchman had become a selfless lynchpin of Fnatic’s game plan, with key utility usage and selfless aggro plays setting up Fnatic’s stars for success.

Veqaj shared on social media, “I’m really sad about tonight. They truly deserved to go to London, and I can’t help but feel a little guilty too.†Later adding, “Please send lots of love to the boys. It’s heartbreaking, but I know we’ll get through this.â€

The player also gave an update on his condition, stating, “As for how I’m feeling, you can count on me to be ready as soon as possible.â€

Fnatic’s Valorant Champions 2026 position on the line

And Fnatic will need Veqaj sooner rather than later. VCT EMEA Stage 2 will be all or nothing for the org, as their place at Valorant Champions is now under severe threat.

Despite the five VCT Points from group stage wins, it will be difficult for Fnatic to qualify through points alone, as it will effectively be out of their hands.

It would take VCT EMEA teams to perform poorly at Valorant Masters London, and for the teams already at the top of the VCT EMEA Points standings to not do well in Stage 2, for Fnatic to get a position purely through VCT Points.

Additionally, there are still 15 points to be distributed amongst the VCT EMEA Stage 1 playoffs top four, making Fnatic’s path narrower.

The path for Fnatic to Valorant Champions Shanghai may instead be through winning or coming in as runners-up in VCT EMEA Stage 2, requiring elite performance in a disrupted season.

Do you think Fnatic will make it to Shanghai? Let us know on our Discord!
For more Valorant news, see Eggsterr’s departure from pro play.