Paper Rex and GIANTX make perfect starts at VALORANT Champions 2025

The opening day of VALORANT Champions 2025 saw Pacific powerhouse Paper Rex and EMEA’s dark horse GIANTX win their first Group Stage matches.

Meanwhile, fellow Group A participants XLG Esports and Sentinels have entered the lower bracket, one loss away from early elimination.

The opening match at Champions treated fans to an explosive clash as VCT Pacific Stage 2 winner Paper Rex (PRX) took on China’s fourth seed XLG Esports. Starting off with a surprise, XLG chose one of its opponent’s best maps, Bind, in the draft, while PRX left a historically shaky Ascent open. However, the Pacific team remained unfazed as it swiftly defeated XLG 2-0.

It was a slow start for PRX on Bind, with the roster losing its defence pistol. As the two teams traded kills and rounds back-and-forth, PRX eventually returned to its signature proactive playstyle. Moreover, Ilia ‘something’ Petrov on Yoru and Wang ‘Jinggg’ Jing Jie on Raze put on massive performances to close out the half 6-6.

While XLG’s in-game leader (IGL) Ran ‘Viva’ Lifan had his moments on attack, he slowed down in the second half. PRX took the second pistol, letting only a few more rounds slip through on its way to a 13-9 victory on Bind.

On Sunset, XLG tried to counter PRX’s signature Sage pick with the firepower of two duelists. After a solid attack start via repeated late rotates, XLG was frequently punished for its fast site executes. Meanwhile, every PRX member delivered multifrags and clutches to close out crucial rounds. 

XLG suffered a 4-8 half, lost both pistols and could only secure one more round on defence before falling to the PRX train.

For the second series of the day, VCT Americas’ third seed Sentinels hoped to make an upset against EMEA’s Stage 2 runner-up GIANTX. Although most analysts placed their bets on the North American roster, GIANTX rose to the occasion to make a 2-1 comeback.

The two teams first clashed on Corrode, VALORANT’s newest and typically defence-sided map, where Sentinels previously held a 74% attack winrate. Despite these daunting odds, GIANTX fought back valiantly on its defence by taking the first pistol and diligently gaining the advantage. 

To GIANTX’s demise, Zachary ‘zekken’ Patrone on Neon was always ready to make space for his teammates while achieving 186 average damage per round (ADR). After an even 6-6 half, GIANTX found itself out-aimed and out-called and could not win a single round on defence.

On Sunset, it was GIANTX’s turn to dominate. On the back of a defence pistol, the EMEA team confidently stopped Sentinels’ site hits with proactive space taking and anti-Neon Cypher trapwires. Sentinels struggled to adapt to the opponent’s diverse defence strategies, ending the half 2-10. When it was Sentinels’ time to defend, a pistol win was not enough to kick off a comeback.

With intelligent calling and an average combat score (ACS) of 362, GIANTX IGL Kirill ‘Cloud’ Nekhozhin helped his team take the series to a third map.

The final showdown took place on Haven, where Sentinels established an early 6-0 lead. Its Omen/Viper team composition remained unpunished until GIANTX increased its aggression on the defence to secure four crucial rounds. 

In the second half, the EMEA squad demoralised Sentinels with successful game plans and mid-round reads. Perservering through numerous close rounds, GIANTX took Haven 13-9.

With the first round of Group A matches concluded, today’s winners, PRX and GIANTX, will face off on September 17th. Meanwhile, XLG and Sentinels have been kicked into the lower bracket to battle for survival on September 19th.

In the meantime, VALORANT fans can look forward to the debut of the event’s four Group C teams tomorrow. VCT Americas Stage 2 runner-up NRG will first face off against China’s third seed and the reigning VALORANT Champion, EDward Gaming. Afterwards, EMEA Stage 2 winner Team Liquid will meet Pacific’s fourth seed DRX.

All games will be broadcast on VCT’s official YouTube and Twitch channels.