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After 8 years, Rekkles leaves Fnatic for G2

Kurt Lozano
·Contributing Editor
Updated ·2-min read
SHANGHAI, CHINA - OCTOBER 17: Martin Larsson aka Rekkles of Fnatic reacts prior to the game between Top Esports and Fnatic on Day 3 of the League of Legends 2020 Worlds Quarterfinals at SMT studio on October 17, 2020 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Yicun Liu/Riot Games/Riot Games Inc. via Getty Images)
SHANGHAI, CHINA - OCTOBER 17: Martin Larsson aka Rekkles of Fnatic reacts prior to the game between Top Esports and Fnatic on Day 3 of the League of Legends 2020 Worlds Quarterfinals at SMT studio on October 17, 2020 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Yicun Liu/Riot Games/Riot Games Inc. via Getty Images)

Fnatic’s longtime AD carry player, Martin “Rekkles” Larsson, has left the team after 8 years for rival G2 Esports.

In a statement on Thursday (19 November), Fnatic said Rekkles informed them of his decision to leave just over a day into League of Legends’ (LoL) free agency period, though the organisation remarked that he initially intended to remain with the team earlier in the year.

“After months of discussions, this marks the culmination of negotiations towards his new contract, and the end of his 8 years and almost 600 games in the black and orange,” the European esports organisation said.

“For transparency into the process, Martin had previously indicated his preference to stay and re-sign earlier this year, and after the largest offer Fnatic has ever made to a player – including a long-term plan for his future after his playing career – Martin has made the decision to move on,” Fnatic added.

While Fnatic noted that they gave Rekkles a Godfather offer — the highest the organisation has ever made to a player — which he eventually refused, his decision “was not based on financial gain”.

At the time of Rekkles’ departure, there had been no official announcements on where he was headed, although Esportsmaniacos’ Pablo "BloopGG" Suárez reported the player had already been signed by G2 Esports.

G2 apparently acquired Rekkles in order to replace their own departing star AD carry, Luka “Perkz” Perković, whose buyout is set to be a record US$5 million.

The move was confirmed early Saturday (21 November).

In his eight years with Fnatic, Rekkles led the team to 26 tournament victories and has been described as arguably the best AD carry in Europe in that span.

He was the first player to reach the 1,000 and 1,500-kill marks in the EU LoL Championship Series (LCS), achieving each feat in 2017 and 2019, respectively.

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