FNATIC to continue without Milan as head coach

FNATIC FNATIC Europe Unranked crashies Austin Roberts Boaster Jake Howlett kaajak Kajetan Haremski CyvOph Clement Millard Veqaj Sylvain Pattyn Alfajer Emir Ali Beder has announced that Milan "Milan" de Meij will no longer be the team's head coach going forward. Assistant coach Casper "Desmo" Rasmussen will serve as interim head coach during the upcoming Esports World Cup EMEA Qualifier while the team searches for a new head coach.

"Whilst we are still in discussion with Milan about his future at FNATIC we want to thank him for his incredible efforts in the position, and we are working on finalizing a new head coach to work alongside Desmo," the team said in the announcement.

Milan joined FNATIC as an assistant coach in September 2024 and was later promoted to the head coach position after Kickoff 2025. With Milan as head coach, FNATIC had a highly successful 2025 season, winning Stage 1 and achieving back-to-back international second place finishes at Masters Toronto and Champions Paris.

2026 has been more up-and-down for FNATIC thus far. The team missed out on Masters Santiago after a loss to Team Liquid in the Kickoff lower bracket final. They bounced back in the Stage 1 group stage with a 5-0 record, but after Sylvain "Veqaj" Pattyn was forced to step back due to health issues, they struggled in playoffs, going out 0-2 and failing to qualify to two global events in a row for the first time in the organization's history.

“After review, we felt like we could get more out of our coaching structure as we try [and] push for our remaining objectives this season,” FNATIC Team Director Colin "CoJo" Johnson said. He later added additional context, explaining, “Decisions are never made without me discussing with every player. Yes we have things to work on that aren't coaching related—we are aware and are addressing those as well.”

“I still believe deeply in this roster and the people behind it. Thank you for all the support during my time here,” Milan said. “Esports moves fast, and sometimes change is part of the process. No regrets, only gratitude for the experience and the people I met through it.”

FNATIC FNATIC Europe Unranked crashies Austin Roberts Boaster Jake Howlett kaajak Kajetan Haremski CyvOph Clement Millard Veqaj Sylvain Pattyn Alfajer Emir Ali Beder is currently:

Jake "Boaster" Howlett
Austin "crashies" Roberts
Kajetan "kaajak" Haremski
Clement "CyvOph" Millard
Sylvain "Veqaj" Pattyn
Emir "Alfajer" Ali Beder
Colin "CoJo" Johnson (Manager)
Casper "Desmo" Rasmussen (Assistant coach)
Philipp "Szed" Schickor (Performance coach)

Honestly, I love Milan - and with the 3 int. grand finals appearances in 2025 and consistently strong results etc., he has proven that his playstyle works. However, I believe that Fnatic is doing the right thing. Sometimes you simply need a fresh perspective and so many players have said that Desmo is someone who understands the game really, really well. He even delivered a great performance while playing as a sub.

So yeah, let's go. Milan will find a job no matter what, too (maybe PCF should sign him).

And I think another extremely good decision was the hiring of Szed as a Performance Coach. Since then, the vibes at FNC seem to be even (!) better. After G2 signed their own PC, jawgemo f.i. praised the general work of PCs, noting that he has been able to focus better on matches ever since; because the PC helped him address issues in his personal life that he previously couldn't solve so easily on his own.