Guild Esports and Fnatic lock Stage 2 Masters Copenhagen spots

The Champions Tour EMEA Stage 2: Challengers playoffs have begun, with six teams competing for three slots to Masters 2. Guild Esports and FNATIC are going to Copenhagen, having secured two spots by winning their Upper Bracket matches on June 18. Their opponents, M3 Champions and FunPlus Phoenix drop to the lower bracket.

[Related: EMEA Challengers 2 Playoffs Preview: Round 1]

Guild Esports vs M3 Champions (2-0)

Guild Esports hit the ground running on M3 Champions’ map pick of Breeze, winning the pistol and bonus before M3C struck back. Three attacker-side wins would be all that M3C won at the half, ending at a deficit of 9-3, before taking the map at 13-6. Guild would then ride the momentum on their map pick of Fracture, trading blows for a close 13-11 closer to the series. The teamplay of Guild shown the strongest, with each member exhibiting 75% and above Kill/Assist Ratio, showcasing the reliance on teamwork in their site executes and retakes.

Fracture would start rough for Guild, despite winning the initial pistol round off of a quad kill by Nikita “trexx” Cherednichenko. M3C would win the bonus round and keep it close to a 7-5 Guild favored half. Winning the pistol once more gave Guild the push they needed, allowing

FNATIC vs FunPlus Phoenix (2-1)

FNATIC’s map pick of Icebox goes according to plan, winning the half 9-3 before securing the map 13-6. Nikita “Derke” Sirmitev and Emir Ali “Alfajer” Beder’s quad kills on rounds 3 and 12 cemented FNATIC’s dominance, giving them the momentum to take the map. Ascent comes as Map 2, FunPlus Phoenix’s pick, with control of the game swinging back and forth until a 12-12 tie was reached. A triple kill from Andrey “Shao” Kiprsky would seal the first round of overtime and carry FPX to a 14-12 victory.

Fracture would prove to be a repeat of Icebox, with FNATIC taking a dominant 9-3 defending side half. FunPlus Phoenix would win the pistol and start mounting a comeback, carried off of a Round 15 Ace from Kirill “ANGE1” Karasiow. However, FNATIC would start to trade rounds before reaching a 13-9 score, securing their spot in Masters 2 Copenhagen.

PENTA for @OfficialANGE1 pic.twitter.com/h0ezkHhSeS

— FPX (@FPX_Esports) June 18, 2022

Playoff Implications

FNATIC now face Guild Esports in the Upper Bracket Final, a rematch from Challengers 1. Previously, Fnatic took a 2-1 victory against Guild, but have changed two roster members since then. Winning sends the victor to the Grand Finals, while the loser drops to the Lower Finals. These matches will decide seeding for EMEA going into Masters 2 Copenhagen.

FunPlux Phoenix drop to the lower bracket, facing Acend for their tournament lives. M3 Champions drop to the lower bracket, where they faced Team Liquid. FunPlus Phoenix beat Acend 2-1, while M3 Champions defeated Team Liquid 2-1. They now will fight for the last Masters 2 spot on June 24.

Stage 2 Masters Copenhagen will take place from July 10 to July 24, featuring twelve teams from all regional leagues. EMEA will send Guild and FNATIC to Copenhagen alongside one more team to be decided in the lower bracket.

Stay Connected

You can find more pieces on VALORANT like “VCT Playoffs” and you can ‘Like’ The Game Haus on Facebook and ‘Follow’ us on Twitter for more sports and esports articles from other great TGH writers along with Justin!

“From Our Haus to Yours”