MiniBoo allowed to explore options as Team Heretics experience potential roster changes

Lithuanian duelist Dominykas ‘MiniBoo’ Lukaševičius has been given permission to explore opportunities outside Team Heretics for the 2026 VCT season.

According to a report by Sheep Esports, the move comes after Heretics crashed out of VALORANT Champions Paris in fifth-sixth place last weekend. This ended a rollercoaster 2025 campaign that saw the team win $500,000 (~£385,000) at the Esports World Cup but fail to replicate its 2024 success.

MiniBoo joined Heretics ahead of VCT EMEA Stage 1 2024 and hasn’t looked back since. The aggressive duelist helped the Spanish organisation reach the grand finals of VALORANT Champions 2024, Masters Shanghai and VCT EMEA Stage 1 2024 — though the squad fell short each time.

His departure would split up VALORANT’s beloved sibling duo. MiniBoo has competed alongside his older brother Ričardas ‘Boo’ Lukaševičius throughout his time on Heretics, creating a unique dynamic within the team.

“When we lose, he’s the more calmer one,” MiniBoo said at a recent press conference. “So I guess when we come back home and we have free time, he’s kind of speaking to me and calming me down because he’s more experienced and he’s more regulated than I am. I’m too emotional.”

The younger Lukaševičius brother described Boo as the stabilising presence for the entire roster: “In-game, it feels like he’s a big brother to all of us, not only to me.”

Boo reflected on the rarity of their situation during the same press conference: “I don’t think there’s many people like that in general who have a chance to play with their brother. So yeah, I’m just happy about it.”

Despite the family connection, both brothers maintained professional boundaries during matches.

“Inside the game, you know, I don’t treat MiniBoo any different like the others,” Boo explained. “I don’t think he treats me any different. And we are just, you know, all equal inside the team.”

Team Heretics entered 2025 with strong expectations after its runner-up finish at Champions 2024. The year started promisingly — third place at EMEA Kickoff, second in Stage 1 and the lucrative Esports World Cup victory in July.

But the wheels came off in the second half of the season. A disappointing 11th-12th place finish at Masters Toronto preceded its Stage 2 struggles, where they bowed out in fifth-sixth. Champions Paris saw more of the same, with Heretics falling 1-2 in their elimination match.

The team’s inconsistency throughout 2025 stands in stark contrast to its steady improvement throughout 2024, when it established itself as EMEA’s second-best team behind Fnatic.