Masters 2 Copenhagen of the 2022 VCT Circuit finishes its third day of the Group Stage. Of the eight teams participating, four advance to the playoffs while the other four are eliminated from the event. Japanese representative NORTHEPTION fall in a 0-2 series against FunPlus Phoenix, eliminating them from the event. As a result, ZETA DIVISION qualify for Champions Istanbul 2022 in first place of Japan’s VCT Circuit Points.

[Related: Who are the NA LCQ Teams that have Qualified?]

The Masters 1 Cinderella Story

ZETA DIVISION first qualified for Masters 1 by besting Crazy Raccoon 3-1 in the Domestic Grand Finals. Entering in Group A, ZETA took an early 0-2 loss against DRX, dropping them to the Elimination Match. Defeating FNATIC 2-0 to advance to the decider, ZETA would win 2-1 against Ninjas in Pyjamas to qualify for the Playoffs Stage. They would lose their opening match again, dropping to the Lower Bracket after an 0-2 loss against G2 Esports. ZETA would then defeat Team Liquid 2-1, DRX 2-1 in a rematch, and Paper Rex 2-1 to qualify for the Lower Finals. Although they would then be swept 0-3 by eventual tournament champions OpTic Gaming, ZETA’s third place would earn them 400 Circuit Points.

Challengers 2 Domestic Run

ZETA DIVISION would automatically qualify for Week 1 of Challengers 2, qualifying for the playoffs with ease. They would 2-0 Reignite and 2-1 REJECT to qualify, skipping Week 2. In the playoffs, ZETA would run through the upper bracket, not dropping a single map until the Grand Finals. ZETA would 2-0 BLUE BLUES.ESP, FAV gaming and NORTHEPTION to wait in the Grand Finals. However, NORTHEPTION would defeat Crazy Raccoon 2-0 in the Lower Finals for a rematch, defeating ZETA 3-1 to claim the title of domestic champions. Although ZETA would earn 75 points for second place, they would not qualify for Masters 2 Copenhagen, with NORTHEPTION taking the Japanese representative spot instead. However, NORTHEPTION would drop in the Groups Stage to DRX 0-2 and FunPlus Phoenix 0-2, ending their run.

Earning only 200 points for their Masters 2 run, NORTHEPTION would finish the VCT at a total of 240 Circuit Points. ZETA’s point total would eclipse NORTHEPTION’s at 475, earning the one slot in Japan for Champions 2022 Istanbul. NORTHEPTION’s performance in the 2022 VCT will still qualify them for the East Asia Last Chance Qualifier, entering as Japan’s first seed. They will be joined by Crazy Raccoon and REJECT to represent Japan. The East Asia LCQ will start on August 8 and last through August 14, featuring teams from Korea, Japan and the FGC.

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