The completion of VCT China Kickoff 2026 put everything in its place — All Gamers, XLG Esports and, of course, the mastodons from EDward Gaming (EDG) received trips to Santiago.
From February 28 to March 15, these guys will have to defend the honor of the region in Chile. Eight of the strongest bands from America, the Pacific region and EMEA will already be waiting for them there, although their compositions are still in the process of formation. This will be the first international event on this year’s VCT calendar — the stakes seem to be as high as possible.
The tournament in China was held from January 22 to February 9. In fact, 10 partner teams and two daring teams that made their way through the Ascension crucible were being hacked.
The new triple—elimination format is tough, but fair. It was the finals in the upper, middle and lower grids that eliminated the superfluous, leaving three vacant places for the best of the best.
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All Gamers Take the crown of VCT China Kickoff
A powerful performance was rolled out. The All Gamers team, in fact, created a small miracle — they were the first to book tickets to the Masters Santiago by going through the tournament rink.
Interestingly, the organization began 2026 with a radical purge of the roster. There are only two left in the clip: Yang “Shr1mp” Yong and their permanent leader, Huang “K1ra” Zhihao. By the way, four Chinese talents and a “secret weapon” from Russia, Roman “f4ngeer” Smirnov, were added to them.
It would seem that the raw composition is not. In the upper bracket, they, in truth, simply destroyed Nova Esports (2:0), after which they shut down Bilibili Gaming (2:0). Even the experienced Dragon Ranger Gaming, who, by the way, rocked up at Champions Paris last year, flew away with a score of 2:0.
The final battle with XLG Esports turned out to be sweaty — 3:2. But this victory, in the end, guaranteed All Gamers the status of the first seed from the Celestial Empire. It’s powerful, you can’t say anything.
XLG Esports: The return of the “dark horse”
They’re back in business. XLG Esports, apparently, is not going to slow down after its Ascension triumph in 2024. Let me remind you that last season they retained a slot in the top league, just beating Dragon Ranger Gaming in terms of Champions results.
The squad has been updated in the off-season. Coconut and Viva left the team, but Liang “Lysoar” Yuhao from Wolves and promising Taiwanese Huang “WsLeo” Ping-wei came.
Kickoff got off to a brisk start, with dry wins over Wolves Esports and even the formidable EDward Gaming (2-0). And although All Gamers dropped them into the middle bracket, XLG quickly recovered. The victory over Bilibili Gaming (3:2) in the decisive match confirmed their right to the second seeding. It looks like it’s going to be the hottest in Santiago.
EDward Gaming: The Rebirth of Champions through the Thorns of the Lower Grid
Of course, the kings of the past cannot be written off. The third slot from China at Masters Santiago, in truth, was literally chewed out by EDward Gaming (EDG), the very triumphants of VALORANT Champions 2024, who forced the world to take into account the region.
After a rather strange and ambiguous 2025, the organization decided it was time to cut it off. They completely rebuilt the coaching bridge. Tang “Muggle” Shijun’s place as head coach is now occupied by Shao “24K” Yubo, who, by the way, is assisted by former T1 mentor Yun “Autumn” Yu-teum.
But that’s not all. There is also a rotation in the squad: Wang “cb” Qingchuan replaced Zhang “Jieni7” Juntai. The latter, by the way, did not go anywhere, but simply moved to the coach’s chair — the castling turned out to be extremely successful.
EDG’s path at the current Kickoff was, to put it mildly, like a roller coaster. They started cheerfully, crushing TYLOO (2-0) in the quarterfinals, but then something broke. Defeats from XLG Esports (0:2) and a sudden misfire from Bilibili Gaming (1:2) sent the champions to the “basement” of the tournament grid.
It would seem that the fiasco is close. But it was in the lower bracket that the champion character woke up — EDG was given a series of three wins in a row. JD Gaming, TYLOO again and, finally, Dragon Ranger Gaming — they all fell under the onslaught of the “edwards” with the same score of 2:1.
In the decisive battle for the ticket (BO5 format), they met with their abusers from Bilibili Gaming. And that’s where the rematch was really sweet – sure 3:1. It looks like the bug fix was successful, right?
While EDward Gaming, along with All Gamers and XLG Esports, are already packing their bags in Chile, the battle is only heating up in the rest of the regions — EMEA, America and the Pacific. The intrigue, in general, remains: by February 16, we will find out the full list of 12 gladiators who will meet at the Masters Santiago. And if you think that’s the end of the surprises of the season, then you’re clearly underestimating the fury of Chinese revanchism.
