The reigning world champion region has secured its four representatives for this year’s
VALORANT Champions. Although the Stage 2 regional playoffs are still ongoing, the
Championship Points standings have already locked in the four Chinese squads heading to Paris. The four remaining teams,
Edward Gaming (the defending world champions),
Bilibili Gaming,
XLG Esports, and
Dragon Ranger Gaming have secured enough points to qualify for the most important competition of the season, and will therefore carry the banner for China.
The
Champions 2025 will take place from September 12 to October 5. The Group Stage will be hosted in Karmine Corp’s home arena at the Arènes d’Évry-Courcouronnes, while the Top 4 showdown will unfold at the iconic Accor Arena in Bercy.
Edward Gaming
The kings of 2024 are set to defend their crown. After finishing second in the group stage behind BLG, EDG fell to Dragon Ranger in the opening round of the playoffs. Dropping to the lower bracket, the world champions have kept their run alive with victories over Trace Esports and TYLOO. Their next clash is against XLG, with a spot in the Lower Final on the line. After missing out on Masters Toronto, EDG will now return to the international stage at Champions.
Lineup:
- Wan "CHICHOO" Shunzhi
- Zheng "ZmjjKK" Yongkang
- Zhang "Jieni7" Juntai
- Wang "nobody" Senxu
- Zhang "Smoggy" Zhao
Bilibili Gaming
Arguably the hottest team in China right now, BLG topped Group Alpha with a 4–1 record, their only loss coming against Trace. Thanks to their group performance, they started playoffs directly in Upper Round 2, where they defeated TYLOO 2–1 to secure a spot in the Upper Final against Dragon Ranger, where they got defeated 1-2. One standout has been Wang “whzy” Haozhe, who is in stellar form this split and a key factor behind BLG’s success.
Lineup:
- Wang "whzy" Haozhe
- Liu "Knight" Yuxiang
- Lu "Levius" Yinzhong
- Marcus "nephh" Tan
- Wang "rushia" Xiaojie
XLG Esports
Led by
a great Teng “
happywei” Min-wei, XLG are putting together a strong Stage 2. Following a 7th–8th place finish at Masters, the team bounced back to top Group Omega with a 4–1 record. Their playoff opener ended in a narrow 1–2 loss against Dragon Ranger, but they quickly recovered with a win over
All Gamers in the lower bracket. Their next match against BLG will serve as perfect preparation for their first-ever Champions appearance, capping off a debut year in VCT after qualifying through Ascension.
Lineup:
- Arthur "Rarga" Churyumov
- Teng "happywei" Min-wei
- Colin "coconut" Chung
- Ran "Viva" Lifan
- James "NoMan" Man
Dragon Ranger Gaming
DRG will also make their first Champions appearance this year. Promoted through Ascension in 2023, the Dragons now get their chance to shine on the international stage. After finishing third in Group Omega, they kicked off playoffs in style, taking down EDG 2–0 before edging XLG 2–1. On Thursday, they also upset BLG in the Upper Final, becoming the first team to reach the Grand Final.
Lineup:
- Shao "Nicc" Yi-chun
- Lin "SpiritZ1" Ding-yu
- Ilya "vo0kashu" Ushakov
- Zhang "Akeman" Haoran
- Luo "Flex1n" Rui
Since both XLG and Dragon Ranger came up through Ascension, one of them will still need to defend its spot in VCT China at the end of the season. Whichever of the two achieves the better Champions finish will be exempt from the promotion/relegation tournament, while the other will have to fight to retain its place in the 2025 Ascension China tournament.
Header Photo Credit: VCT China / Riot Games
