Team Liquid and Fnatic faced off in the intense grand finals of the VALORANT Champions Tour Stage Two EMEA Challengers playoffs today. Although Liquid walked away with the victory, both teams will move on to Masters Reykjavík.
Both teams went undefeated in group play and easily secured their spot in the playoffs. Liquid swept Oxygen Esports, and Fnatic swept Gambit Esports before they faced off in the event’s final match.
The playoff victories secured each team’s spot in Iceland, but the final match decided who walked away with bragging rights and the first place cash prize.
Fnatic started the series with a brutal 13-3 win on Haven and did not drop a single round in the second half. But Liquid took the defeat in stride and answered back with a 13-7 on Icebox, and Scream led his team to victory with 24 kills.
Liquid maintained their momentum in game three on Ascent, although Fnatic kept the score closer than the previous match. Fnatic needed to win Bind if they wanted to force the series to map five, and they started strong by winning the first six rounds.
Liquid won the next five rounds, but Fnatic won a crucial pistol round in the second half, which set them up to win the next four rounds. This was enough for Fnatic to win the map and take the series to map five.
Liquid absolutely dominated in the first half and won the first eight rounds. Although Fnatic started with four round wins in the second half, Liquid regrouped and finished the series with a 13-7 victory.
Liquid and Fnatic will represent the EMEA region at Masters Reykjavík. Sentinels and Verison1 will represent NA at the event, and NUTURN, Crazy Raccoon, and X10 Esports will represent Korea, Japan, and SEA, respectively.
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