The VCT Americas Stage 2 Finals is set to begin on August 29th, with four teams competing for the championship and the final spot at VALORANT Champions Paris.
Sentinels, G2 Esports, NRG, and Cloud9 will battle across three days of competition at the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles. Matches will begin on August 29th and conclude with the Grand Finals on August 31st.
While other teams have already secured their places at Champions Paris through Championship Points, the final Americas slot remains undecided. The winner of Friday’s lower bracket match between NRG and Cloud9 will determine which organisation makes the trip to Paris.
Tournament Schedule and Format
The double-elimination playoffs begin with Sentinels facing G2 in the Upper Finals at 2:00 PM PT on Friday. The loser drops to the Lower Finals, where they’ll meet the winner of NRG versus Cloud9, scheduled for approximately 5:00 PM PT the same day.
Saturday’s action features the VCT Americas OVERRIDE Showmatch at 2:00 PM PT, followed by the Lower Finals at approximately 3:00 PM PT. The Grand Finals takes place on Sunday at 2:00 PM PT, with the Champions Paris Draw Show following immediately after.
According to the announcement, all Lower Finals and Grand Finals matches will be played as best-of-five series.
OVERRIDE Showmatch Details
The first-ever VCT Americas OVERRIDE Showmatch will see two creator teams face off on the map Corrode on Saturday. Team Alpha, captained by Gustavo ‘Sacy’ Rossi, will compete against Team Omega, led by Sadeel ‘Sidsity.’
Viewers will directly influence gameplay through live voting in chat, choosing round rules including ‘No Utility,’ ‘Right Click Only,’ ‘All Comms,’ Map Revealed’ and ‘Observer Mode.’
Team Alpha’s roster includes Christina ‘TinaKitten’ Kenyon, Eduardo ‘Coreano’ Martins, Tomas ‘Safiro’ Scattolin, and Noah ‘Foolish Gamers’ Brown, with Josh ‘Sideshow’ Wilkinson coaching.
Team Omega features Rodrigo ‘f0rsaken’ de Carli, Malena ‘Suga’ Souto, Javier ‘Vela’ Velásquez and ‘Grim’, with Guilherme ‘spacca’ Spacca as coach.
Stage 2 Finals Block Party
The Stage 2 Finals Block Party runs from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM PT on August 30th and 31st outside the Riot Games Arena. The event features the tournament’s first Artist Alley, team booths from six VCT Americas organisations, and various fan engagement activities.
Saturday’s Artist Alley showcases Fifth Element Pins, Shhcha, Ayime.co, Ahhgela, Hunnybaes and Boeun. Sunday’s lineup includes Naytendo, Chierri Studio, Hunnybaes, Aud Ceramics, Yasmeen Ali and Fishsideup featuring Death Petal.
Activities include live music, giveaways, food trucks, photo booths, merchandise, yard games, fan sign stations and meet-and-greets. Team booths will be present from 100 Thieves, Sentinels, Cloud9, Evil Geniuses, NRG and Leviatan.
Teams’ Roads to Finals
Sentinels enter as the tournament’s top seed after a perfect 5-0 group stage run. The team’s core has shown dominant form throughout Stage 2. With Champions qualification already secured, questions remain whether they’ll reveal new strategies or save them for Paris.
G2 Esports finished groups 4-1 and leads the Americas in Championship Points. The roster has maintained consistency throughout the season, making their Upper Finals clash with Sentinels a key matchup for determining the region’s top team.
NRG underwent a mid-season roster overhaul. The team enters Friday’s match after a 2-0 victory over Leviatan, with their Champions Paris hopes riding on beating Cloud9. The latter eliminated 100 Thieves to reach the finals and seeks its first international tournament appearance since 2021.
