100 Thieves start Champions run with a win over Fnatic

Snatching the last North American ticket to Istanbul, 100 Thieves came to Champions as a bit of a mystery. This was their first time at an international tournament since 2021 VALORANT Championship Tour Stage 3 – Berlin. But in their first match in Group D, they took down Fnatic in a close series with a lot of excitement.

WHAT A WAY TO START ISTANBUL. #100WIN pic.twitter.com/DEoVPRSUk5

— 100 Thieves Esports (@100T_Esports) September 2, 2022

As the third place team in Masters 2 Copenhagen, many people expected Fnatic to ultimately win the series. Now they have to play against FURIA Esports to stay in the tournament while 100 Thieves will face DRX for the chance to confirm their spot in Champions playoffs.

100 Thieves’ strong start in Champions

100 Thieves started off equal in Pearl, the newest addition to VALORANT’s map pool, with a few interesting rounds here and there. In the second half, they closed the series 13-10. In Bind, one of Fnatic’s favorite maps, they lost both halves — 8-4 and 5-3 on top of that — adding up to 13-10 for the team in orange.

In the deciding map, 100 Thieves showed us some good VALORANT by leading the series 5-0. Unfortunately for them, Fnatic also showed us some equally good VALORANT, bringing the series back to 5-5 and ending the half 6-6. Just like in the first map, the thieves took over the game in the second half, closing the book on this series with a victorious last word.

2 – 1 @FNATIC GG’s to them!! Hopefully we’ll be able to play on stage soon 😢, happy with our performance today #100T #VCTChampions

— Derrek (@DerrekOW) September 2, 2022

100 Thieves’ road to the top is long, treacherous and filled to the brim with stronger and stronger enemies. Will they be able to steal themselves a success story or even the trophy? Or will they go home, awaiting a new chance in 2023? We will see in the upcoming days, so stay tuned.