A big shake-up just hit the competitive VALORANT scene. Riot Games announced this past Saturday (the 6th) that they’ve disqualified the KOI organization from the VCT EMEA league. This news, shared first on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter), sends ripples through the esports community.
Riot’s official word is clear: KOI breached its contract with the league. This means the Spanish team, which started in December 2021 and joined the competition in January 2022, is out. The immediate impact is on the players. They’ll all be free agents, able to explore new opportunities once the current season wraps up.
The league won’t stay a person short for long. Riot also shared that a new team will step in to fill KOI’s spot for the 2026 season. They plan to carefully evaluate potential replacements before making any public announcements. Importantly, Riot confirmed this change only affects VCT EMEA. It won’t touch other leagues or competitions. For instance, Movistar KOI Fénix can still compete as usual in Challengers EMEA Spain: Rising. The Ascension EMEA series also remains unaffected.
VCT EMEA Update: pic.twitter.com/0t53yYqt5G
— VALORANT Esports EMEA (@valesports_emea) September 6, 2025
However, there’s another side to this story. Ibai “Ibai” Llanos, one of KOI’s owners, didn’t stay quiet. He posted a video on the team’s official X page, offering his perspective. Llanos admitted the team’s poor performance played a role in the decision. But he quickly pointed to something else, suggesting the sudden disqualification might be connected to a possible return of Gentle Mates (M8) to the VCT. Gentle Mates had previously been relegated from the league. It adds a layer of intrigue to an already surprising situation.
Actualización sobre nuestra plaza de VCT: pic.twitter.com/vZA4cLcUyZ
— Movistar KOI (@MovistarKOI) September 6, 2025