The VCT CN KICKOFF event will resume on Friday when the playoffs get underway.
CHINA – The Group and Play-In stages for VCT CN KICKOFF have come to an end and the playoff bracket is now set.
The event in Shanghai started with eleven teams fighting for two VALORANT Masters Madrid spots but that pool has now been whittled down to four, each with a story to tell. The semi-finals begin on Friday with FunPlus Phoenix taking on Dragon Ranger Gaming at 5 PM SGT (UTC+8) before we see EDward Gaming versus Trace Esports in a rematch of the CN Evolution Act II grand finals.
In the quest for a coveted playoff spot, every advancing team faced their share of tribulations, conceding a map or two along the way. It’s more competitive than ever before.
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The narrative took an intense turn in Group C as heavily favored EDward Gaming found themselves in a closely contested battle against Liu “Spring” Chun-ting’s Wolves. The final map proved to be a nail-biter, with only a two-round difference between the two teams, ultimately reaching a dramatic end after a full set of regulation rounds (Bind 13-10, Ascent 10-13, Breeze 13-11).
In Group B, Ascension winners Dragon Ranger Gaming steered clear of JD Gaming (previously Rare Atom) on their path to securing a playoff spot and only encountered All Gamers (Sunset 13-11, Ascent 13-4) and Titan Esports Club (Icebox 13-11, Split 8-13, Bind 13-10).
On the other side of the table, FunPlus Phoenix experienced a clean win in their initial match in Group A against Nova Esports (Sunset 13-10, Lotus 13-5). However, their second match against Trace Esports proved to be a nail-biter, concluding with a close three-round margin in regulation across all three maps (Sunset 13-11, Bind 11-13, Lotus 13-10). The additions of Qu “Life” Donghao and Kale “autumn” Dunne propelled them to new heights, particularly in the firepower department.
Trace Esports were able to bounce back from their earlier loss to FPX as they beat Nova Esports in the decider match to secure a Play-In berth, with Titan Esports Club and Bilibili Gaming joining them from Group B and C, respectively. The Play-Ins saw TE take down TEC in the first match, during which Song “FengF” Xuefeng dropped 40 bombs despite losing the first map of Breeze 16-18 before coming back in the following two maps on Lotus 13-6 and Split 13-8.
The win earned them a break before playing Bilibili Gaming in the third and final Play-In match. The showdown concluded in the most suspenseful manner, with a heart-stopping 0.13-second defuse almost preventing their victory. The final result was a hard-fought 2-1 win, with scores on Lotus (11-13), Sunset (15-13), and Bind (14-12), eliminating Bilibili Gaming and dashing their hopes to qualify for Madrid.
Below you can find the complete schedule of the VCT CN KICKOFF playoff bracket:
| EDward Gaming | Trace Esports |
| FunPlus Phoenix | Dragon Ranger Gaming |
Friday, March 1
- 5 PM SGT – FPX vs. DRG
- 7 PM SGT – EDG vs. TE
Saturday, March 2
- 5 PM SGT – Grand finals
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Cover photo courtesy of VALORANT Esports CN
