“From 2022 until now, Brazilian teams have consistently pushed us”: G2 mimi ahead of Game Changers Championship 2026

G2 Gozen will begin its fifth VALORANT Game Changers Championship campaign in São Paulo on October 24. As EMEA’s first seed, the team has received a direct bye into the second round of the Upper Bracket, where it will face the winner of FENNEL GC vs. MIBR GC.

Team IGL Michaela "mimi" Lintrup, who is also the only remaining player from the original G2 Gozen roster, has qualified for every GCC event so far. She will once again step onto the stage with the goal of lifting a second championship trophy for the organisation.

Ahead of Game Changers Championship 2026, Sheep Esports interviewed the Danish player to discuss the team's preparation for the event, the current state of the scene, Game Changers 2027 concluding at VALORANT Champions, plans for the VCT Open Qualifiers and more.

Michaela "mimi" Lintrup: “I'm feeling good, of course. At this point, qualifying for Champs is almost an expectation for G2, so I'm happy we managed to do it. Compared to last year, we've also had much more time to prepare. Back then, we only had a week or two, but this time, we've been able to relax a bit and prepare properly. I'm feeling good about it and it's going to be fun.

mimi: Yes, I'm spamming Twitter right now! One of the best things about going there is knowing you'll have a very passionate crowd. It can be intimidating when you're not a home team, but you're guaranteed an incredible atmosphere. They've also made some improvements to the studio since our last visit, so I'm excited to see those. It's a comfortable stage for everyone and no matter what happens, it's going to be fun. I think that's the main theme for this Champs, being in the moment and enjoying ourselves.

mimi: It was really nice. We'd never done anything like that with the entire team before, so it was great to spend time together without VALORANT being the focus. I think every team should experience that because you get to bond on a different level and connect over things beyond the game. The hot-air balloons are also a core memory. That was amazing and I think everyone should experience it at least once. I'm happy I got to share that experience with people I really care about and enjoy being around.

mimi: The biggest difference is how good players are now and how much talent has entered the scene. Comparing our first Champs win to the most recent edition, it's clear how much the level has improved. Back then, our experience in FPS games gave us a significant advantage. Now, everyone has caught up and it comes down to who's the best at the game, from shooting to understanding the macro and micro aspects. Players are simply better now and every year, there's a new rookie performing incredibly well. The scene keeps evolving and the growth is real.

mimi: Riot is definitely making improvements. They're introducing incentives for teams next year and bringing Game Changers Championship alongside VCT Champions. I'm not sure how the scheduling will work, but it's clear they're trying. Riot has always been honest about wanting players to strive for VCT rather than become too comfortable in Game Changers. I understand that and I think anyone competing in Game Changers would love the opportunity to play in VCT.

At the same time, it's difficult to complain too much when we have a league that runs throughout the year and gives teams something meaningful to compete for. It also gives fans a reason to support female rosters, which isn't necessarily the case in other games. Game Changers will never be VCT Champions or VCT Masters, but that's not its goal. What we have is already amazing. However, the scene needs to feel more prioritized. Sometimes, things seem rushed or last-minute and even when a lot of thought has gone into something, that effort isn't always visible.

Take the LCQ, for example. Having it just six days before the tournament starts doesn't make sense to me. Riot put time and effort into organizing it, but it could have happened earlier. There's no reason it couldn't have been held three weeks beforehand. These are changes that wouldn't necessarily require a huge amount of extra work but would make a significant difference for competing teams and the organizations investing in the scene.

mimi: I think it's cool and exciting. My main concern is how the tournaments will be scheduled. I've previously competed in a women's tournament alongside a major event in Katowice and we ended up with our stage tucked away in a corner of the expo. So I'm curious about how much attention Game Changers will receive. Will it be treated as a side event, or will Riot schedule things to give both tournaments proper attention? For example, VCT could run on certain days, with Game Changers matches on the off-days, allowing both events to feel important. I think that would be a good approach, but I can also see that it might not happen that way.

mimi: I think this has been one of Gozen's most productive years. Last year was really messy, with players getting benched and everything feeling all over the place. This year, we've made tremendous progress. We haven't won as many splits as we did in 2024, when we were dominant, but our growth throughout this year has been incredible. We've worked hard on specific aspects of our game and we can clearly see the difference in how we play and communicate compared to the beginning of the year. As a player, I find that much more rewarding than simply winning every split. You can feel the progress and see that the work you've put in has paid off. Sometimes, constantly winning doesn't give you the same sense of reward.

mimi: Winning Champs in 2022 will always be my favourite moment. Until I win another Champs, nothing will top it. I'd also say 2024 was a highlight. We brought in some incredibly talented players and Vania (Aleyna Keskin) and Amy (Amy Lai) are still with us today. It proved that the potential we saw in them was real and that we'd built something meaningful. That year also put a lot of things into perspective. Talent alone isn't enough; there's much more to building a winning team than simply having a strong roster. It was a turbulent year, but also a huge learning experience. We were still winning and so many people believed we would win Champs, including us. That's what made it so heartbreaking. We genuinely believed in something that ultimately didn't become reality.

mimi: Winning is obviously the goal, but I think reaching the final is a realistic target for us. We're in a much better place as a team now than we were at the beginning of the year and there's been a lot of growth that people haven't necessarily seen. I'm confident in where we stand and I'd be happy with a top-two finish. I'd also be happy with a top-three result. When we failed to make the top three last year, I was thinking, "Damn, we suck!" I genuinely believe reaching the final is realistic. Even if the crowd isn't cheering for us, that could be an extra motivation to make it happen.

mimi: From 2022 until now, Brazilian teams have consistently pushed us. Whether it's Team Liquid or MIBR, there's never an easy game against them. You can always expect an exciting match with plenty of passion on both sides. It comes down to which team is more focused and performs at its best that day. I genuinely think both matchups are 50-50. The Brazilian teams also have the home crowd behind them and they're comfortable playing on that stage. There are plenty of factors working in their favour, but that's also what makes facing them exciting. I don't think the pressure will be on us, which should allow us to relax a little.

mimi: I'm not entirely sure how that came about. I'd love to see the clip they took from my watch party. But if there's one thing I want to say, it's that if we face Gen.G, I know we're going to win. I have absolutely no doubts about it. That's how confident I am. That said, I respect the team a lot. I know they're working hard and I've seen how much they've improved since Bali. It'll be a fun matchup regardless. I'm sure they're extra motivated now because I said something they did wasn't good, but we're motivated, too. I hope it'll be a fun game. It won't be that close. I like that! I'm kidding. No, don't tell them. [Laughs]

mimi: Definitely. We're planning to compete in the Open Qualifiers. The timing is a little tricky because we'll be returning from Brazil and I think the first qualifier starts just 12 hours after we land. We haven't figured out exactly how we'll manage that yet. But this is what everyone wanted, right? Any team that loves competing wants to play in Open Qualifiers. It's something we want to do and we will. It's just a matter of timing.

mimi: The offseason is going to be about making it to VCT. [Laughs] I'm not entirely sure when we'll start planning everything because, for me, the offseason begins after Champs. Then we'll be grinding the Open Qualifiers. We haven't discussed the details much yet because our priority is to focus on Champs first and take things from there. Ultimately, we want to compete in the Open Qualifiers, achieve the best results possible, learn from the experience and improve for next year.”