2025 Fnatic LEC roster revealed: Upset and Mikyx return as Dardo steps down as team director

A Dynamic Bot Lane Reunited

Upset’s return to Fnatic is a two-year cycle where he played for Team Vitality in 2023 and Karmine Corp in 2024. On the other hand, Mikyx, who has recently played for G2 Esports, returns to Fnatic’s team. In particular, Mikyx began his professional career as a substitute for Fnatic in 2016, which means that this is a kind of a return match for the experienced support.

The pair takes the place of South Korean players Noah and Jun, who left Fnatic last month, which will lead to a new bot lane chemistry. To replace Mikyx, G2 has signed Labros “Labrov” Papoutsakis in their roster announcement for the year 2025.

Speaking on his return, Upset shared:
“I was unfortunately ill during the video shoot but I am glad to be back. It has been fun scrimming with the team and we are going to do everything in our power to make our fans happy. This is the kind of feeling one gets when he or she gets home.”

Completing the roster for Fnatic’s Spring 2025 lineup is top-laner Óscar “Oscarinin” Muñoz, jungler Iván “Razork” Martín, and mid-laner Marek “Humanoid” Brázda alongside Joining Upset and Mikyx.

Coaching Change and Organizational Changes

Fnatic’s roster reveal comes after several coaching staff shakeups. Lohmann will assume the role of head coach, while Gonçalo “Nightshare” Silva stepped down in October. To help Fnatic move towards a more stable team, GrabbZ will be joining the team as a positional coach along with Hidon and Gaaz as the assistant coach.

Reflecting on his new role, GrabbZ commented:
“I think I can be more level-headed than the rest of the team because of my experience. The play style last year was sometimes too aggressive and I want to teach the players to be more tactical this year.”

Also, one of the most popular streamers, Marc ‘Caedrel’ Lamont, left Fnatic for Los Ratones, the organization he created, where Kieran Holmes-Darby, the co-founder of Excel Esports, will act as a general manager.

Dardo’s Leaving and Contemplations

Dardo, who has been with Fnatic for several years as a team director, will leave the organization at the end of January 2025. He intends to go on a sabbatical and then join another department in the same company. In a recent blog post, Dardo shared his thoughts on why he decided to step down from the world of esports after almost a decade of work and focus on his personal life.

“About a year and a half ago, I started talking to Fnatic about the possibility of shifting my roles to better balance my work-life,” Dardo wrote. “At 36, I have been considering the future—wondering about such things as having children.”

Dardo also addressed regrets during his tenure, particularly the lack of an LEC trophy despite reaching seven finals:

“We got close but it was not enough. Another thing that I wish I could do again is withdrawing from the public sphere during difficult moments in 2023. Looking back, I should have shared more of our struggles and my part off camera with the fans.”

Concluding his statement, Dardo expressed gratitude and respect for the Fnatic community:

“To the fans, I know you are frustrated and I am as passionate as you are about Fnatic. Some criticism made me feel like I deserved to be insulted and it was way too much, but it came from your passion for this team, passion I will always appreciate.”