The kings of Paris are back. After lifting the
VALORANT Champions 2025 trophy in the French capital last year,
NRG have rediscovered their form in the same city by securing a place in the semifinals of the
Esports World Cup. Having emerged from the tournament's "Group of Death" with victories over
Paper Rex and
Karmine Corp, the North American side went on to eliminate
Gentle Mates despite the home crowd's overwhelming support for the local representatives.
After dropping the opening map, NRG responded on Ascent before closing out the series convincingly on Lotus, led by a standout performance from Adam "mada" Pampuch, who helped silence the crowd. NRG will now face BBL Esports in the semifinals after the Turkish side defeated Team Heretics in the quarterfinals.
Following the match, Logan "skuba" Jenkins spoke with Sheep Esports about his team's return to form after a disappointing run at Masters London.
What was your feeling after the game?
Logan "skuba" Jenkins: “After the game, honestly, I was just relieved to have won today. We had a bad performance in London, so I think it was very important for our team overall to have a deep run here.
You were playing in front of the home crowd today against Gentle Mates. Did you feel it while being in the game? Did it impact you?
Skuba: It definitely impacted me at the start. At the start, it made me a little bit mad honestly. I didn’t like when we walked out, and were getting booed. But I think as the game was getting longer, I started to like the atmosphere and think it was pretty fun.
You told me it was important for you to show a good face this tournament after your team missed the playoffs in London, what did you think you improved since your Masters run?
Skuba: Yes, I think that was a big thing for our team overall. I know that our fans have a lot of expectations of us, and we want to meet them really hard. I think that in London we had a very little amount of time to prepare. We had the EWC qualifiers that we had to play, so we only had like 2 practices, and that was about it. We just had a lot of boot camp practices before EWC, and I think it put us in a really good spot.
The last time you went to Paris, it turned out to be a rather good experience. Are you feeling any kind of buff or any particular good atmosphere playing here in France?
Skuba: I'm starting to feel that way [Laughs]. I hope we can win this tournament as well. Winning Champions last year in Paris was really insane. It's all I could ever ask for. So if we can do it again, I think it might be a lucky city for us.
What would you say are your chances to win the tournament right now? Who would be your biggest opponent?
Skuba: I honestly think our biggest competitor right now is BBL, so if we can get through BBL, I do think we're going to win the tournament.”
