LOUD and Team Vitality set for a rematch as NRG and G2 Esports falter

LOUD and Team Vitality maintain their dominance at VALORANT Champions 2026 with a 2-1 win over NRG and a 2-0 win over G2 Esports, respectively. The two teams from Group B continue to show their class on the big stage with heroic individual performances and solid teamwork.

It was a day to forget for North American VCT fans as NRG and G2 fell to the lower bracket. LOUD and Team Vitality will now fight for a spot in the Grand Finals in the first match inside the Mercedes-Benz Arena; NRG will face 100 Thieves, and G2 Esports will play against T1 in the lower bracket.

LOUD started off strong on NRG’s map pick, Haven, with a 13-9 win. The dynamic duo taking Champions by storm, Lucca “lukxo” Travaioli and Roberto “erde” Lobos, posted 45 kills between them to give LOUD the lead in the series. Things continued to look good for LOUD on their map pick, Sunset, after a strong comeback in the first half. However, NRG secured 6 rounds in a row to tie the series with a 13-10 win. Georgio “keiko” Sanassy had a monstrous map on his Chamber pick.

It was a complete whitewash on the decider map, Summit, where NRG has quickly built a reputation as one of the very best with their unique Brimstone and KAY/O comp. An 11-1 lead in the first half was secured by LOUD as erde produced 3 unbelievable rounds towards the end, leaving him with a 17/4 KD. A pistol and anti-eco were all NRG could get in the second half before LOUD closed out the series. lukxo ended the series with a 63/33 KD, while erde followed closely with a 50/30 KD.

The second series started off with Team Vitality showcasing their brilliant attack side on Abyss, with a 9-3 half being the reward for their labors. However, G2 Esports showed it was their map pick for a reason with a spirited comeback spearheaded by Andrej “BABYBAY” Francisty, but Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen’s stellar Yoru performance was just enough for Vitality to steal G2’s map with a 13-11 win.

The second map, Split, was a similar tale in the first half as Vitality secured an 8-4 lead. This time around, there wasn’t a comeback in sight as the EMEA 4th seed slammed the door shut with a flawless defense side to win the series in commanding fashion. It was a real team effort from Vitality, as the difference between the top fragger and the lowest fragger was only 9 kills. The superteam that was promised at the start of the season is finally peaking at the right moment; VALORANT Champions 2026 could be the event where VCT EMEA ends their international trophy drought.