VCT 2026 enters the home stretch. Stage 2 has determined the final regional league champions, and now the entire VALORANT scene's attention shifts to the main event of the year — Champions Shanghai. Two teams wrapped up Stage 2 with championship titles — 100 Thieves in Americas and Global Esports in Pacific.
In the VCT Americas Stage 2 grand final, 100 Thieves defeated 🇧🇷 LOUD 3:2. The series went the full five maps, with the fifth match deciding the title. Despite the loss, LOUD put up a strong final performance, with erde standing out in particular.
His stats in the deciding series: K/D +34, and +8 in opening duels won. With 98 kills to just 64 deaths, erde became LOUD's primary firepower and delivered an incredible individual performance even in defeat.
For 100 Thieves, this title marks another major achievement in 2026. Earlier, the team won VALORANT at the Esports World Cup, and now adds the Americas Stage 2 championship to their resume.
In the Pacific region, the grand final proved even more dramatic. Global Esports trailed Nongshim RedForce 0:2, but managed to turn the series around and win three consecutive maps:
Global Esports 3:2 Nongshim RedForce
Thus, GE executed a reverse sweep to become VCT Pacific Stage 2 champions. UdoTan earned the Finals MVP title. For his performance, he was also awarded a custom diamond-encrusted Pulsar mouse.
This season has already turned historic for Global Esports: the team reached a VCT grand final for the first time, played at Masters, and now won Pacific Stage 2 as they head to Champions.
Team Razer deserves special mention. Four teams from the Razer ecosystem wrapped up Stage 2 with championship titles:
In addition, 100 Thieves also won VALORANT at EWC 2026.
Karmine Corp's story is particularly striking: after a failed Stage 1 where the team finished the regular season 0–5, they managed to bounce back and claim the title in Stage 2. TYLOO also created a landmark moment for Chinese VALORANT, capturing their first VCT China title.
Now all roads lead to Shanghai. VALORANT Champions 2026 kicks off on September 24, with the grand final taking place on October 18. Sixteen teams will compete in the tournament for a $2,250,000 prize pool.
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Key details about Champions:
As Champions approaches, four Stage 2 champions head into the biggest tournament of the year in stellar form. 100 Thieves will look to keep their incredible season rolling, Global Esports aims to solidify their historic success, while TYLOO and Karmine Corp seek to prove their regional titles were no fluke.
The main battle of the season for the world championship title begins on September 24 in Shanghai.
As a reminder, Fnatic snaps multi-year streaks of international tournament appearances in League of Legends and VALORANT.
