LOUD beat Team Vitality 2-1 in the upper final in Shanghai and are back in the VALORANT Champions grand final for the first time since 2022. A win on Sunday would make them the first organisation to win the title twice.
LOUD will play for the VALORANT Champions 2026 title at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai on Sunday at 08:00 CEST (14:00 local time). Their 2-1 win over Team Vitality in Friday’s upper final sent them straight to the grand final, where they meet the winner of Saturday’s lower final between Vitality and 100 Thieves.
Five editions of Champions have produced five different winners. LOUD won the 2022 title in Istanbul, so a win on Sunday would make them the first organisation to win VALORANT Champions twice. None of the players from the 2022 lineup are still on the team, so for erde, Darker, lukxo, tkzin and DaviH it would be a first world title.
Revenge on Vitality
The upper final was a rematch from the group stage, where Vitality beat LOUD 2-0. It started the same way. Vitality took their own pick, Lotus, 13-8 with Jamppi on a 1.41 rating.
LOUD answered on Summit, their own pick, with a 13-5 win built around lukxo. The Brazilian finished the map with 26 kills, 248 average damage per round and a 1.89 rating. LOUD then took the decider on Haven 13-11, with erde leading the way on 24 kills and a 1.47 rating.
LOUD2-1
Team VitalityStatsLotus 8-13, Summit 13-5, Haven 13-11
| LOUD | K-D | +/- | ADR | KAST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 lukxo | 64-42 | +22 | 180 | 71% |
 erde | 54-43 | +11 | 172 | 81% |
 Darker | 48-41 | +7 | 132 | 76% |
| tkzin | 43-45 | -2 | 138 | 73% |
 DaviH | 29-39 | -10 | 84 | 71% |
| Team Vitality | K-D | +/- | ADR | KAST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Jamppi | 47-44 | +3 | 113 | 65% |
 Sayonara | 48-48 | 0 | 133 | 71% |
| Derke | 41-46 | -5 | 134 | 62% |
 PROFEK | 38-47 | -9 | 117 | 76% |
 Chronicle | 36-53 | -17 | 123 | 78% |
Over the three maps, lukxo was the best player on the server with a 1.32 rating and a +22 kill difference, according to VLR. Chronicle, who has lost two Champions finals with Gambit and Fnatic, finished on -17.
The series also had a long pause. During one map, a LOUD player’s game froze in the middle of a fight. Tournament officials decided to replay the round, and because of a known rollback bug that can stop Chamber from picking up his Rendezvous anchor, they recreated the lobby and restored every player’s credits and items by hand, Riot explained afterwards.
LOUD’s road to the final
LOUD lost only one series in Shanghai, the group stage match against Vitality.
LOUD2-0
EDward GamingGroup B, opening matchTeam Vitality2-0LOUDGroup B, winners’ matchLOUD2-0
Global EsportsGroup B, deciderLOUD2-0
Paper RexUpper quarter-finalLOUD2-1
NRGUpper semi-finalLOUD2-1Team VitalityUpper finalThey knocked out the defending champions NRG on the way, and beat Paper Rex without dropping a map.
Who LOUD will face
100 Thieves reached the lower final by beating G2 Esports 2-1 on Friday (Lotus 10-13, Ascent 13-10, Summit 13-7), which left G2 in fourth place with $130,000. The lower final between Vitality and 100 Thieves is the first time the two teams have met, according to Riot.
Both opponents would bring history of their own. Vitality have never won Champions, and Chronicle is still chasing his first title after two lost finals. 100 Thieves coach Nbs won the first Champions with Acend in 2021.
The prize money
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1st | $1,000,000 |
| 2nd | $400,000 |
| 3rd | $250,000 |
| 4th | $130,000 (G2 Esports) |
The grand final is a Bo5. It is the last event of the current VCT format. From 2027, the VCT becomes a tournament-based circuit with open qualifiers, ending with Champions 2027 in Austin.
