On Tuesday, LEVIATÁN confirmed their head coach for Stage 2 of the VCT Americas, promoting Casper "Desmo" Rasmussen, who previously served as the assistant coach. He steps into the role left vacant by Dimitar "Itopata" Staev, who departed the project to return to Europe and join Fokus. The Danish coach is now tasked with reviving a struggling squad that has had a lackluster year so far.

Indeed, 2025 hasn’t been kind to LEVIATÁN, as the team failed to keep pace with the top contenders in the Americas league and did not qualify for either of the year’s two Masters events. This marks a notable decline compared to 2024, when the organization secured spots at both Masters Shanghai and Champions Seoul — finishing third at the latter. This season, the South American team has found itself stuck in the mid-table of the VCT Americas, finishing Top 5-6 at Kickoff and Top 9-10 in Stage 1.

A new dynamic for LEVIATÁN

Their underwhelming form continued during the Esports World Cup qualifier, where LEV managed a win over FURIA before being knocked out in the next round by KRÜ Esports, far from securing a qualifying spot. However, some hope returned during the recent Tixinha & Sacy Invitational — an unofficial tournament featuring VCT Americas’ South American teams. LEVIATÁN came out on top, defeating FURIA in the semifinals and avenging their earlier loss to KRÜ with a narrow 3-2 victory in the grand final. The teams will return to official competition starting July 18, with the launch of Stage 2.

Desmo, like his former head coach, previously spent time at Apeks in Europe. In 2023, he succeeded where Itopata had fallen short — helping the Danish club reach VCT EMEA by winning the Ascension tournament. Already an assistant coach at that time, he made the move across continents shortly after, joining LEV as an assistant under the Bulgarian coach in December 2024. Now, he takes the reins of the project, intending to turn things around and potentially earning a spot at VALORANT Champions Paris 2025.