Valorant Champions Shanghai: 100 Thieves, FUT, LOUD and Vitality Win Group A & B Openers

All 16 teams have now played at VALORANT Champions Shanghai 2026. Groups A and B finished their opening matches over the weekend, and home fans in China had a rough time of it. EDward Gaming and JD Gaming both lost 2-0, which means all four Chinese teams at the event have dropped into the elimination bracket.

Here is what happened on 26 and 27 September, and what comes next.

Group B: Vitality survive Global Esports, LOUD overpower EDG

Team Vitality 2-1 Global Esports (Saturday, 26 September)

Vitality came in as EMEA's fourth seed and took down Global Esports, who arrived as a top Pacific seed.

• Abyss (Vitality's pick): Vitality won 13-10. They built a 10-4 lead, and a PROFEK clutch stopped a Global Esports comeback.
• Ascent (GE's pick): Global Esports won 13-9. PatMen was outstanding and ended the map with a 1.59 rating.
• Summit (decider): Vitality won 13-11. They surprised people with their agent picks: Derke played Chamber and Chronicle played Neon. GE came back from 8-12 to 11-12, but Vitality held on and avoided overtime.

LOUD 2-0 EDward Gaming (Saturday, 26 September)

LOUD won Lotus 13-8 and Summit 13-5. Rookie duelist tkzin put up three aces across the series. According to Sheep Esports, that is a new Champions record for a single series. He finished with a 42/24/7 K/D/A over both maps. Lotus was EDG's own pick, and it went badly wrong for the Chinese side.

Group A: 100 Thieves and FUT Esports sweep

100 Thieves 2-0 T1 (Sunday, 27 September)

T1 led both maps early, and both times 100 Thieves came back:

• Summit: T1 led 7-5 at the half. 100 Thieves then won the second half 8-1 to take the map 13-8.
• Ascent: T1 started 4-1, but 100T led 7-5 at halftime and closed out 13-9 with four rounds in a row.

Cryocells led the series with a 1.52 rating and a 45/23/6 K/D/A, according to VLR.gg.

FUT Esports 2-0 JD Gaming (Sunday, 27 September)

FUT, Europe's third seed, won the first map in a rout. They took Ascent 13-1, and a pistol-round 4K from KROSTALY started a 12-0 run on defence. JD Gaming pushed much harder on Summit. They led 8-4 at the half, but FUT drew level at 8-8 and won four of the last five rounds to finish 13-10. s0pp was FUT's best player, with 41/23/5 and 11 first bloods over the series.

What's next in Groups A and B

The groups use a GSL-style double-elimination format with best-of-three series. Two teams from each group go through to the playoffs.

• Wednesday, 30 September (winners' matches): Team Vitality vs LOUD; 100 Thieves vs FUT Esports
• Friday, 2 October (elimination matches): Global Esports vs EDward Gaming; T1 vs JD Gaming
• 3–4 October: decider matches for the last playoff places

The playoffs begin on 7 October. The grand final is on 18 October, and finals weekend moves to the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Pudong. The champion receives US$1 million.

Why it matters for Asian fans

Global Esports and T1 are two of the Pacific teams that Malaysian fans follow most closely, and both now have to win elimination matches to stay alive. EDG and JD Gaming are in the same position, so the host region is under a lot of pressure in front of its own crowd.

Key takeaways

• Group B openers: Vitality beat Global Esports 2-1 and LOUD swept EDward Gaming 2-0.
• Group A openers: 100 Thieves beat T1 2-0 and FUT Esports beat JD Gaming 2-0.
• LOUD's tkzin recorded three aces in one series, which Sheep Esports reports as a Champions record.
• All four Chinese teams are now in the elimination bracket.
• The winners' matches in Groups A and B are on 30 September.

FAQ

Q: How many teams advance from each group? A: Two. Each group uses a double-elimination GSL format with best-of-three series.

Q: When do the Champions Shanghai playoffs start? A: 7 October. The grand final is on 18 October.

Q: Which Group B teams have to win to stay in the event? A: Global Esports and EDward Gaming. They meet in an elimination match on 2 October.

Sources: VLR.gg, Sheep Esports, games.gg, esports.gg