Gentle Mates is reportedly set to add Ugur “Ruxic” Guc for the 2027 VCT season. Sheep Esports reported on September 27 that the Turkish player is expected to leave NAVI after two seasons and join the French organization. Neither club has announced a completed signing, and the report does not provide a contract length or official start date.
The wording around the move matters. Sheep Esports attributes the information to sources close to the situation and describes Ruxic as set to join Gentle Mates. That is meaningful reporting, but it is not the same as a public contract, a Global Contract Database update or a registration confirmed by Riot Games. Until one of those appears, the transfer should remain described as reported.
Ruxic joined NAVI at the end of 2024 and competed with the organization throughout the 2025 and 2026 seasons. His expected departure fits a wider off-season change around NAVI. The same outlet has reported that hiro and chloric are set to move toward Team Heretics. Those separate reports point to a substantial rebuild, but NAVI has not released a final 2027 lineup.
Gentle Mates appears to be constructing its own project at the same time. Sheep Esports previously connected the organization with Alfajer and kozzy and says coach Kaplan is part of the plan. Ruxic would add recent Tier 1 experience to that reported group. The available information still stops short of naming a complete five-player roster or assigning every in-game role.
The reported move extends a larger rebuild
Gentle Mates’ 2026 season contained both international progress and a difficult ending. The organization returned to VCT EMEA after Riot removed KOI from the league and had limited time to assemble its roster. It nevertheless earned the region’s second seed at Kickoff and qualified for Masters Santiago, the club’s first international VALORANT LAN.
At Santiago, Gentle Mates advanced from the group stage before losses to Nongshim RedForce and All Gamers ended the run. The team later placed fifth-sixth in EMEA Stage 1 and reached the same placement at the Esports World Cup. Those finishes showed that the project could compete beyond a single qualifying run, even though it did not turn the season into sustained domestic contention.
Stage 2 produced the opposite signal. Gentle Mates finished 13th-16th after Play-In losses to Enterprise Esports and Eintracht Frankfurt, both teams entering from outside the established partner field. The reported 2027 moves therefore follow a season with enough success to justify continued investment and enough inconsistency to explain major personnel changes.
Ruxic’s value cannot be measured only by the number of names linked with the roster. A lineup needs compatible agent pools, a clear calling structure and a coaching plan that survives meta changes. The report identifies potential teammates but does not say who will lead in game, which player will cover each controller or initiator duty, or whether further trials are continuing.
The distinction is especially important because community discussion can turn a group of recognizable players into a completed “superteam” before contracts and roles are public. Alfajer brings established international experience, while kozzy emerged as a prominent EMEA prospect. Adding Ruxic may widen the tactical options, but no source cited here guarantees results or confirms that every reported player will start together.
NAVI’s side of the move also remains incomplete. Losing several players would create vacancies, but an expected departure does not specify whether a contract expires, is transferred or is terminated by agreement. No fee or buyout was reported. The safe conclusion is that Ruxic is part of Gentle Mates’ reported plan and NAVI faces a rebuild, not that all contractual steps are finished.
The 2027 league position is another open variable
Gentle Mates is not guaranteed a partnership position in the redesigned 2027 VCT EMEA structure. That uncertainty does not prevent an organization from recruiting, but it affects how readers should interpret the project. A strong reported lineup may be built to compete through the new qualification system rather than entering with an automatic place in every stage.
Official confirmation would resolve several outstanding points: Ruxic’s status with NAVI, the effective date of any move, Gentle Mates’ complete player list and the team’s route into the 2027 competition. A club announcement or authoritative contract update would carry more weight than additional social-media speculation around practice lobbies.
For now, the report is significant because it connects a two-season NAVI player with a Gentle Mates rebuild that already includes other reported additions. It also reinforces the scale of the EMEA off-season, where multiple organizations are making plans before their final league positions and full rosters are public. The responsible framing is specific: Ruxic is reportedly set to join, but he has not been officially announced.
Sheep Esports reports that Ruxic is set to leave NAVI for Gentle Mates in 2027. The move would add Tier 1 experience to a project already linked with Alfajer, kozzy and Kaplan. It remains an unconfirmed roster report, with the final five, roles, contract details and Gentle Mates’ exact 2027 league route still unresolved.
