Rocket League coach John “Virge” Willis and Dignitas are separating, the organization announced Friday.
Today we mutually part ways with the OG Rocket League coach, @Virge.
Thank you for all the work that you have done for us, and we will be cheering for you in the future. pic.twitter.com/KOTYhR74PD
— Dignitas (@dignitas) July 16, 2021
“Today we mutually part ways with the OG Rocket League coach, @Virge,” Dignitas tweeted. “Thank you for all the work that you have done for us, and we will be cheering for you in the future.”
Virge is considered one of the best coaches in the professional Rocket League scene. He joined Dignitas in 2019 and became their full-time coach in February of 2020. This split was a bit of a surprise, but there are rumors going around that the organization is looking to make some changes after a disappointing end to RLCS X.
Dignitas loses a high-profile coach with Virge
Dignitas was once an unbeatable dynasty. After falling apart in early 2019, the team struggled to get back to their old form. Later that year, Virge joined and brought structure back to the Rocket League team. After also signing the Belgian prodigy Maëllo “AztraL” Ernst the month before, Dignitas reached the RLCS Season 8 World Championships semi-finals that December. They fell to Team Vitality after a close series, but one thing was clear: Dignitas was back among the very top.
His most famous moment came during that RLCS 8 regional when Dignitas was down 3-0 in a best-of-7 versus FC Barcelona to qualify for Worlds. His speech when their opponents were on match point became iconic as Dignitas went on to reverse sweep and qualify. Following their third-place finish at Worlds, Dignitas won RLCS 9 EU in 2020. Dignitas were one of the favorites going into RLCS X, despite the World Championships’ cancellation.
Virge continued to be in charge of the roster for Season X. His contribution to the roster kept Dignitas near the top of European Rocket League, but ultimately, the team fell short of top-six. Dignitas, who had seen numerous players come and go, ended their season without qualifying for Championships.
Virge’s position with Dignitas was a given for a long time. He had proven himself to be an excellent coach and a perfect fit for Dignitas. His next steps are not yet clear, but something seems to be on the way. He had a close cooperation with team captain Jos “ViolentPanda” van Meurs, who is rumored to work with fellow-Dutchmen Ole “Oaly” van Doorn and Thomas “ThO.” Binkhorst next season in some way. Dignitas is doing a bit of an overhaul, it seems, but who stays and who goes it still up in the air.
“With that, I am currently a free agent,” Virge wrote on Twitter. “I am ready, motivated, and will be grinding harder than ever. There is still more to come, announcements coming soon.”
