The Valorant Masters London playoffs are set to begin after a shocking final day of the Swiss Stage, which saw Valorant Champions 2025 winners NRG fall out of the competition.
The North American powerhouse had finished in third place at Valorant Masters Santiago, but could not overcome FUT in the Swiss Stage decider matches, losing 2-1 to a FUT roster transformed in recent weeks.
Xi Lai Gaming and Global Esports went on to play the last match of the Swiss Stage, with the Chinese roster overcoming a spirited Global Esports roster in a tight 2-1 victory.
Valorant Masters London playoff bracket & schedule
The Valorant Masters London playoff bracket will be a double-elimination bracket, in the normal format for Valorant internationals. All matches are Best of 3, except for the Lower Final and the Grand Final, which are Best of 5
The opening matches of the Valorant Masters London bracket are as follows:
- Paper Rex vs Leviatán – June 12, 15:00 BST/10:00 EDT
- Team Heretics vs Team Vitality – June 12, 18:00 BST/13:00 EDT
- EDward Gaming vs FUT – June 13, 15:00 BST/10:00 EDT
- G2 vs Xi Lai Gaming – June 13, 18:00 BST/13:00 EDT
G2 were the first to select their opponents, taking Xi Lai Gaming as their Round 1 nemesis. The Chinese roster is undoubtedly viewed as the weakest opposition still in the competition after their narrow qualification for the playoffs.
G2 will be hoping that the match is the start of their big international breakthrough as the dominant roster in VCT Americas is yet to bank an international title.
Next up, EDward Gaming, the VCT China Stage 1 champions, selected FUT. The contest will be an interesting watch, with EMEA looking much stronger so far at the Masters London than its shoddy Masters Santiago showing that saw the region join China as the earliest to leave the competition.
Paper Rex would then select Leviatán, after the South American roster completed a thrilling victory over NRG to qualify for the playoffs 2-0. The roster will now face the tournament favourites, but they will not back down from a fight against Pacific’s hardest hitters.
As the draw process saw random regional Stage 1 winners choose their opponent, it is no surprise that the teams who got to pick later are facing tougher opposition.
Team Heretics were effectively the victims of that process, left only with the choice to select their regional rivals in Team Vitality. The match is a rematch of the VCT EMEA Stage 1 Grand Finals, but this time, in a Best of 3.
Vitality took a 2-1 lead in that Best of 5, so the series feels like it really could go either way. At the very least, EMEA will have won team remain in the upper-bracket, with the region having the most teams in the playoff bracket, with two teams making it through Swiss, joining Heretics in the playoffs.
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Darragh is an Esports Journalist for Insider Gaming specialising in Counter-Strike. He loves to explore how esports teams work, or why they very often do not.
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