EDward Gaming Becomes First Team Eliminated From VALORANT Champions 2025
- Miguel Méndez
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
The most important event of the professional VALORANT season continues, and with eliminations now underway, the tournament is guaranteed to crown a new champion. Defending titleholder EDward Gaming (EDG) fell 2-1 to Team Liquid(TL) and became the first team eliminated from VALORANT Champions 2025 in Paris, failing to advance past the group stage.
The Valorant World Championship brings together the best teams of the season in Paris, and as the group stage nears its conclusion, the first eliminations are sending squads home. On September 19, EDG faced Team Liquid in the opening round of the lower bracket, where defeat meant the end of their championship run. Both teams had started their campaigns on the wrong foot, falling to NRG and DRX, respectively.
Former Champions EDward Gaming Eliminated in Group Stage
EDward Gaming opened the series with complete control on Sunset, delivering a solid defensive half to build an 11-1 lead. Although Team Liquid managed to take a couple of rounds after the switch, EDG closed out the map 13-3. On Abyss, however, the European side found its rhythm, taking charge of the attack to head into halftime with a 9-3 advantage. The reigning champion secured the opening rounds of the second half but was unable to break through the defence, as Liquid responded with a 13-6 win to even the series.
The series came down to Bind, where both teams, facing elimination, delivered the closest contest of the match. They went into halftime tied, and the battle remained tight after the break. EDward Gaming reached map point on attack, but Ayaz “Nats” Akhmetshin kept Team Liquid alive by forcing overtime. Alongside Patryk “Patitek” Fabrowski, he sealed the map with a 15-13 victory, ending EDG’s season.
EDG Falls Short After Promising Start
With their elimination, EDward Gaming concludes its season after a strong start earlier this year, securing first place at the VCT China Kickoff and a third-place finish at VCT Masters Bangkok. However, the team fell short in Stage 1 with a top-four finish that kept them out of VCT Masters Toronto. In Stage 2, EDG placed third once again, but their run at VALORANT Champions 2025 in Paris ends without a single win.
VALORANT Champions 2025 in Paris continues on September 20 with the opening match between Bilibili Gaming and Rex Regum Qeon, a series that could mark the end of the season for the VCT Pacific Stage 2 runner-up. Matches are broadcast on the official VALORANT Esports channels on YouTube and Twitch.