Gentle Mates Confirms Vatira, zen, and Atow Superteam Ahead of the RLCS 2027 London Kick-Off
The biggest roster move of the offseason became official on Wednesday, October 28, 2026: French esports organization Gentle Mates has confirmed the signings of Axel "Vatira" Touret, Alexis "zen" Bernier, and Tristan "Atow" Soyez for the RLCS 2027 season. Backed by co-founders Corentin "Gotaga" Houssein, Lucas "Squeezie" Hauchard, and Kevin "Brawks" Georges, the French-Belgian trio unites three of the most decorated mechanical prodigies in Rocket League history under one banner.
Three Mechanical Titans Unite Under the M8 Banner
Unveiled on the official Gentle Mates channels with the tagline "The 3 monsters are finally reunited," the new lineup immediately becomes the centerpiece of the 2027 European transfer window. At just 20 years old, Vatira already holds the all-time record for the most RLCS Major titles in history. After years as the franchise cornerstone of Karmine Corp, the French team leader now surrounds himself with two premier playmakers in pursuit of the one trophy still missing from his cabinet: a 3v3 RLCS World Championship ring.
He is joined by his former Karmine Corp teammate Atow and 2022-23 RLCS World Champion zen, whose arrival comes just four days after Team Vitality officially confirmed zen's departure alongside ExoTiiK and stizzy. Crucially, the chemistry at the core of this roster has already been battle-tested on the biggest stage: in September 2026, zen and Atow captured the RLCS 2026 2v2 World Championship together, edging out Team Falcons twin brothers Saleh "Rw9" and Yazeed "Kiileerrz" Bakhashwin 4-3 in a thrilling Grand Final.
Inside a High-Stakes Offseason and Full Roster Overhaul
To clear the way for this powerhouse trio, Gentle Mates parted ways with its entire previous lineup that had won the Boston Major earlier in the year, releasing Oskar "Oski" Gozdowski, Nassim "nass" Bali, and Archie "Archie" Pickthall, along with head coach Nicolai "Snaski" Andersen. Gentle Mates did not name a new head coach during Wednesday's player reveal, noting that further staffing details will be presented during the club's upcoming keynote event.
The negotiations behind the move sparked weeks of intense debate across the European scene. Shortly after the episode where Kameto and Gotaga settled their high-stakes Rocket League transfer dispute live on stream, Karmine Corp co-founder Kamel "Kameto" Kebir stated on stream that the trio had held talks with Vitality, Karmine Corp, and Gentle Mates before opting for what he described as a significantly larger financial offer from Gentle Mates. That claim was publicly disputed by Vatira and Atow's agent, Prodigy Agency CEO Jérôme Coupez, who stated that the duo's exit from Karmine Corp stemmed from considerations regarding unpaid wages.
Eyes on London for December's RLCS Club Championship 2027 Kick-Off
With Gentle Mates confirmed as a partnered organization in the RLCS Club Championship for 2027, the squad will compete in the European region starting this winter. Vatira, zen, and Atow will make their official tournament debut together from December 9 to December 13, 2026, at the RLCS Club Championship 2027 Kick-Off event in London.
| Player | Nationality | Previous Team | Career Highlight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Axel "Vatira" Touret | France | Karmine Corp | All-time RLCS record holder for most Major titles won |
| Alexis "zen" Bernier | France | Team Vitality | RLCS 3v3 World Champion (2023) & 2v2 World Champion (2026) |
| Tristan "Atow" Soyez | Belgium | Karmine Corp | RLCS 2v2 World Champion (2026) & multiple Major winner |
Whether you are tuning in for the London LAN or jumping into ranked queues with the pro scene's go-to controller, check out the official links below:
My Take
Watching Vatira and zen finally pull on the same jersey alongside Atow feels like a fever dream for anyone who has followed competitive Rocket League over the past three years. For seasons, these two French superstars were the defining rivals of Europe, trading blows across Regional finals and Majors while Team Falcons steadily tightened its grip on international trophies. By uniting the all-time Major king with the reigning 2v2 World Champion duo of zen and Atow, Gentle Mates has assembled the highest-ceiling roster the game has ever seen.
That said, the pressure on this trio is going to be suffocating from day one. When you poach the franchise pillars of both Karmine Corp and Team Vitality to build a superteam of this magnitude, second place is no longer acceptable. Every Regional slip-up will draw massive scrutiny, and anything short of lifting the World Championship trophy in 2027 will be viewed as a disappointment. December 9 in London cannot come soon enough.
SEO consultant for over 20 years and digital entrepreneur, Charles 'Grimtag' Ronchain is the founder of Pro-Gamer.gg, Retrocharting.com, and Gamescharting.com. A competitive gamer, streamer, and retro game collector, he has worked in the video game industry for over 15 years, notably as a consultant for leading game price comparison platforms. Passionate about real-time performance data and gaming technology, he analyzes competitive esports, gaming hardware benchmarks, and creator workflows on Pro-Gamer.gg with an authentic player perspective.
