The first four playoff teams at VALORANT Champions Shanghai 2026 are now confirmed.

100 Thieves and Team Vitality won their group winner matches on September 30, joining Paper Rex and NRG in the knockout stage. Four more playoff places remain open before the group stage ends on October 4.

The results add another layer to the tournament picture outlined in Frag’s VALORANT Champions Shanghai 2026 preview.

Champions Shanghai playoff teams so far

• Paper Rex – qualified from Group C
• NRG – qualified from Group D
• Team Vitality – qualified from Group B
• 100 Thieves – qualified from Group A

The remaining four spots will be decided through the elimination and decider matches across Groups A-D.

Follow the latest VALORANT matches, scores and streams on Frag as the field is completed.

Team Vitality sweeps LOUD 2-0

Team Vitality became the third team to secure a playoff place by beating LOUD 2-0 in the Group B winner match.

Vitality controlled Ascent 13-7 before surviving a much tighter Summit. The second map went deep into overtime, with Vitality finally closing it 19-17.

That gave Vitality a clean 2-0 series and a direct route into the playoffs.

The result also means LOUD remains alive. The Brazilian side drops into the Group B decider, where it will get another opportunity to qualify.

100 Thieves beats FUT Esports 2-0

100 Thieves followed with another sweep in Group A, defeating FUT Esports 2-0.

The Americas champion opened the series with a dominant 13-5 win on Split and then closed Lotus 13-10.

That makes 100 Thieves the fourth confirmed playoff team and sends FUT into the Group A decider.

100 Thieves has now won both of its Champions group matches without dropping a map after also beating T1 2-0 in its opening series.

Paper Rex was first through from Group C

Paper Rex became the first team to lock a playoff berth on September 29.

G2 Esports took the opening map of the winner match, Split, 13-9. Paper Rex answered with a 13-11 win on Haven and finished the comeback 13-9 on Lotus.

The 2-1 series gave Paper Rex a 2-0 group record after its opening win over Team Liquid.

G2 remains in contention and will move into the Group C decider after the elimination match between Team Liquid and TYLOO.

NRG completes a comeback against Karmine Corp

NRG also qualified on September 29 with a 2-1 win over Karmine Corp.

Karmine Corp started strongly and won Ascent 13-7. NRG then responded by taking Summit 13-11 and Haven 13-9.

The comeback secured NRG’s place in the playoffs and kept its perfect Champions match record intact after an opening 2-0 victory over Nongshim RedForce.

Karmine Corp now waits in the Group D decider.

Four playoff spots still remain

Champions Shanghai uses four groups of four teams, with two teams advancing from each group.

The winner matches have now produced the first qualifier from every group:

• Group A – 100 Thieves
• Group B – Team Vitality
• Group C – Paper Rex
• Group D – NRG

The second qualifier from each group will come through the elimination and decider route.

That makes the next phase simple: eight teams remain in direct contention for the final four playoff places, while four teams will be eliminated before the bracket begins.

October 1 elimination matches

Two elimination matches are scheduled for October 1.

• TYLOO vs Team Liquid – Group C
• Xi Lai Gaming vs Nongshim RedForce – Group D

The losers are eliminated from Champions Shanghai.

The winners advance to decider matches against G2 Esports and Karmine Corp respectively.

October 2 elimination matches

Groups A and B move into their elimination matches on October 2.

• T1 vs JD Gaming – Group A
• Global Esports vs EDward Gaming – Group B

Again, the loser of each series leaves the tournament and the winner gets one final qualification match.

FUT Esports and LOUD are already waiting in the corresponding deciders.

What the playoff picture looks like now

The four confirmed teams give every region representation in the first half of the playoff field.

100 Thieves represents the Americas, Team Vitality comes from EMEA, Paper Rex from Pacific and NRG gives the Americas a second qualified team.

The remaining qualification matches will decide whether those regional balances change before the knockout bracket is drawn.

One of the most important questions is whether G2, Karmine Corp, LOUD and FUT can recover after losing their winner matches. Each has already won once in Shanghai, but now faces a single best-of-three with a playoff place on the line.

Champions Shanghai schedule from here

The group stage continues through October 4.

• October 1 – Group C and D elimination matches
• October 2 – Group A and B elimination matches
• October 3 – Group C and D decider matches
• October 4 – Group A and B decider matches
• October 7 – playoffs begin
• October 18 – grand final

The tournament runs in Shanghai with a $2.25 million prize pool.

How to follow Champions Shanghai on Frag

Frag tracks VALORANT match schedules, live scores and available streams throughout Champions Shanghai.

Use the VALORANT section on Frag for the latest matches, and revisit our full Champions Shanghai preview for the complete 16-team field and tournament format.

With 100 Thieves, Vitality, Paper Rex and NRG already through, the next four days will decide the other half of the playoff bracket.