FURIA stronger in 2nd VCT appearance – Champions 2022 Teams

The start of VALORANT Champions 2022 is just days away. With the Last Chance Qualifiers over, the teams that will compete in the biggest and most important tournament of the year are all set. Unlike last year, this year Brazil was only able to send 2 representatives to the year-end tournament. The only constant for the region is FURIA’s using their last chance to make it to the event.

Let’s recap FURIA’s trajectory in 2022 and their state leading up to VCT Champions.

FURIA seeks consistency in 2022

Since January 2021 when they entered the VALORANT scene, FURIA have never been the “best” team in the region. Falling behind Vivo Keyd and Vikings at times, but staying marginally ahead throughout the season. Howver, the team had a new opponent in 2022 with the creation of LOUD. 

FURIA entered the 2022 season with the same roster as in VCT 2021. Although the roster lagged behind other teams during the year, it caught a break towards the end of the year and managed to take part in VALORANT Champions 2021. Whether they could maintain this trajectory was a question mark. With the start of the 2022 season, it was realized that not much had changed for the organization.

FURIA’s disappointing Stage 1 performance

Starting VCT 2022 Brazil Stage 1 Challengers in Group B, the team made it to the Playoffs with 2 wins and 2 losses. History repeated itself once again and FURIA ended their Stage 1 journey in Lower-Bracket Round 2 without a win against their main rivals.

When Stage 2 kicked off, things went much better for the Brazilian representative. They only lost to LOUD in the group stage but managed to dominate all other teams. Playoffs could have been different for them this time. Unfortunately, FURIA had to wake up from the dream early with two shock losses. First to Keyd Stars 2-1 and then to Los Grandes 2-1, eliminating them from the knockout stage without a win.

Just like last year, FURIA’s hopes of securing a place in an international tournament will now rest on VCT 2022 South America Last Chance Qualifier. Wanting to make the most of their last chance of the year, the organization recruited dgzin from Gamelanders Blue and participated in the tournament with a renewed roster.

Unlike some regions, South America LCQ included teams from both the LATAM region and Brazil. This forced teams to prepare for the different regions’ play styles. 

LCQ Kings strike hard

As such, FURIA started the tournament on a good note with a win over FUSION. Finding the morale they were looking for, the team also took down 9z Team to reach the Upper-Bracket Final. Here, however, they faced the end-game boss KRÜ Esports and were relegated to the Lower-Bracket Final. As per the rules, two teams from the LCQ were going to VALORANT Champions 2022, so winning the Lower Final was enough for FURIA.

Their opponent in the final was TBK Esports, a team they knew well in their region. In a best-of-five match, FURIA won 3-0 without losing any map points and secured the final ticket. Mazin, the team’s flex player, averaged 228 ACS in the final series and contributed 56 kills to the victory.

FURIA’s first opponent in VALORANT Champions 2022 will be DRX of Korea. The match will be played on September 2nd.