The Valorant Masters started last weekend in Reykjavik. Team Liquid got off to a strong start with two wins
The Valorant Stage 1 Masters started last Sunday. Twelve teams from all over the world are playing in the Icelandic capital Reykjavik for a prize pool of 675,000 US dollars. With Team Liquid and Fnatic, two European representatives are currently in the group stage of the international tournament. However, the start for the two teams could not have been more different.
A successful start for Team Liquid
Team Liquid got off to a perfect start in the tournament. The Dutch eSports organisation defeated the South American team of Krü Esports 2-0 in their opener. “Krü had a very hard time against us today,” Liquid pro Adil ‘ScreaM’ Benrlitom found after the victory in the tournament livestream.
The young Belgian was ambitious: “People know what Liquid is capable of. I think we can beat everyone in this tournament.” They carried their good form into their next duel. They beat Thai side Xerxia 2-1, so the opener could hardly have gone better.
It is a special moment for Liquid because they were not supposed to be in the tournament: The team originally missed out on qualification and is only there as an alternate for FunPlus Phoenix, who could not travel to Iceland.
Fnatic misses successful start
The situation was completely different for the European colleagues of Fnatic. They missed the chance to start the tournament successfully and lost to the Brazilian opponent Ninjas in Pyjamas with 0:2.
Fnatic reached the final of last year’s Stage 2 Masters, which also took place in Reykjavik – now they are on the brink of elimination. On Wednesday they will fight for their place in the tournament. In the elimination match of Group A, they will face the Japanese team Zeta.
