Valorant Champions 2026 is officially underway, and the opening series in Shanghai delivered exactly the kind of drama the Valorant betting scene had been waiting for. Paper Rex beat Team Liquid 2-1 in the first match of Group C on September 24, taking Ascent 13-4, dropping Haven 13-7, and closing out the decider on Lotus 13-8 with an ace from Khalish “d4v41” Rusyaidee.
Ascent: PRX run away with it after a slow start
The series opened on Ascent, and for the first few rounds it looked like Liquid might make it a fight. The Europeans clawed back to 4-4 early, but a run of timeouts and a shift to a more aggressive PRX attack turned the map on its head. Paper Rex closed the first half 7-4 on the harder attacking side, and on Ascent that kind of buffer is usually decisive. It was here: PRX won nine of the next ten rounds to finish 13-4. Ilia “something” Petrov led the way on Yoru with a 20/10/4 scoreline, while d4v41 played Chamber, an uncommon pick that Liquid never quite found an answer to.
Haven: Liquid’s double-duelist gamble pays off
Map two was where the series got interesting. Team Liquid switched to a composition few expected: Raze and Yoru as a double-duelist core with Harbor as a solo controller. Paper Rex countered with Astra alongside a Phoenix and Yoru duelist pairing and Chamber again. PRX started strongly, but Liquid’s aggressive use of Harbor’s Cove and High Tide broke up PRX’s setups and created constant space. Liquid took Haven 13-7 and levelled the series, the first sign of real vulnerability in a Paper Rex side widely regarded as one of the tournament favourites.
Lotus: a 9-3 half and an ace to finish
The decider went to Lotus, and Paper Rex reasserted control immediately. A 9-3 first half put Liquid in a hole they never escaped. Liquid strung a few rounds together to make it 13-8, but the map ended in the most emphatic way possible when d4v41 pulled off an ace to take the series 2-1.
GSR steps up after Liquid’s last-minute roster change
Much of the pre-match attention was on Ognjen “GSR” Bondžić, who was moved into Liquid’s starting lineup shortly before Champions in place of Semyon “purp0” Borchev. After a difficult Ascent, GSR settled noticeably on Yoru across the last two maps, and Liquid’s coaching staff said between maps that he was feeling comfortable on the big stage. For a player thrown into a Champions opener against Paper Rex, taking a map off the favourites is a respectable debut.
What it means for Group C and the betting picture
Paper Rex came into Shanghai as the first team to lock in a Champions spot, even after a less convincing Pacific Stage 2 run. Pre-match odds had them as clear favourites over Liquid at roughly 1.60 to 2.25, and the result matched the expectation, though the Haven loss suggests PRX can be exploited by well-prepared, unconventional compositions. For bettors weighing map handicaps in Group C, that is worth remembering: PRX have now shown they can be taken to three maps.
Liquid drop into the elimination side of Group C alongside the loser of TYLOO vs G2 Esports, while Paper Rex advance to the winners’ match. Anyone considering an early-tournament punt on the Shanghai bracket can compare welcome bonuses before the group stage heats up. The first week continues with Nongshim RedForce vs NRG and Global Esports vs Team Vitality among the headline fixtures.
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