South American esports organization LOUD emerged victorious at VALORANT Champions 2026, defeating European squad Team Vitality 3-1 in the grand finals. The tournament, featuring 16 teams, took place from September 24 to October 18, 2026, in Shanghai, China. This victory makes LOUD the first organization in VALORANT history to win the world championship title twice, adding a new trophy to their 2022 success.
The total prize pool for the championship amounted to $2.25 million USD. Team LOUD claimed the grand prize of $1 million, while Team Vitality earned $400,000 as a consolation prize for their second-place finish. The decisive matches for the top four teams were hosted at the Mercedes-Benz Arena, whereas the group stage and early playoff rounds took place at the Jing'an Sports Center.
In the final series, the teams traded wins on the first maps: LOUD won on Summit (13:11), and Vitality tied the score on Lotus (13:8). Following this, LOUD dominated on Sunset (13:5) and secured the overall victory on Haven with a score of 13:10. On their path to the championship, the teams faced each other three times: Vitality won in the group stage, but the South American squad managed to take revenge in the upper bracket finals of the playoffs and, ultimately, in the grand finals.
The title of the tournament's Most Valuable Player (MVP) went to LOUD's 18-year-old captain, Chilean Roberto "erde" Lobos. In addition to the team triumph, the Shanghai tournament was marked by a series of historical and individual achievements:
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