Trace Esports upsets Leviatán to win Group C at VALORANT Champions 2024

If you had Trace Esports winning Group C in your Pick'Ems, you are either a liar or a savant. Either way, the Chinese team topped their group. At VALORANT Champions 2024, Trace Esports upset Americas titans Leviatán to qualify for playoffs.

The Chinese region is still fairly new to VALORANT esports when you look at the bigger picture. Prominent teams such as EDward Gaming and FunPlus Phoenix have made a name for their league, however.

And now another enters the conversation, as the run of a lifetime may have just begun in Group C at VALORANT Champions 2024. Trace Esports, who bested Team Vitality in their opening contest, took down a tournament favorite in Leviatán to advance to the playoff bracket as the group's first seed.

Trace won the series 2:1 through Bind, Sunset, and Ascent. The opening and second map were rather close, but a statement was made on Ascent where they took it 13:5. Only one Leviatán player ended up with an ACS higher than 190 in that final map.

That victory propelled a team, that many expected to be a dud, right into superstardom. And the best part is that it wasn't anything flashy. They played their game, studied up on their opponent, adapted, and straight shut them down.

The team itself that took down Leviatán consists of:

Multiple players on that roster just joined this year. And as they started Stage 2 of VCT China, they immediately took down FPX, and did so again in the playoffs. Their efforts were enough to gain the number three seed for Trace Esports at VALORANT Champions.

The rest is history. And don't forget that Biank is no stranger to upsets. He was on the 2023 Bilibili Gaming roster at Champions in Los Angeles. That team upset NRG twice, with their second being an elimination game.

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