Photo by Liu Yicun/Riot Games
EMEA is already stepping into Day Eight of its Stage 2 Play-Ins, and the region’s Championship Points standings are the most competitive of the four regions. The rise of Vitality as the superteam they were made out to be and FUT looking hotter than ever have turned up the heat. At the end of Stage 2, the region will send four teams to Champions Shanghai, where it will look to bring EMEA its first trophy since FNATIC’s double-lift in 2023.
With six Tier One teams already sent home, the region is guaranteed to send at least one Challengers team to the Playoffs later today.
Here’s a look at Ult Orb’s Champs Points Roundup: EMEA edition.
Our six categories, as a reminder:
- Already In – Team has already mathematically qualified for Champions.
- Should Make It – Team is leading in points or close to the top; very simple criteria to make it to Champions.
- Solid Chance – Just outside the upper echelon in points; could qualify with the right turn of events.
- Odds Are Low – Low point count; team needs a miracle to qualify through points.
- Top 2 or Bust – Challengers teams and teams that are mathematically out or have an unrealistic outlook to qualify
- Already Out – Teams that have already been eliminated from the Play-In.
Already In
None
Should Make It
Team Vitality (14 pts)
After a win against FUT Esports in the final week of group play, Team Vitality is in the points lead with 14. Maintaining the momentum of a fourth-place finish at Masters London, the superteam is looking to win their first title in VCT; to guarantee an appearance in Shanghai, Vitality need to lock in a top four finish, pushing the team far enough ahead in points to stay at the top in EMEA.
Related: Champs Points Roundup: NRG well on-course to defeat Champs curse
FUT Esports (13 pts)
Following an exit just outside the top four in London, FUT logged a 3-2 record, narrowly missing out on a bye to the Playoffs due to Vitality and BBL finishing in the top two at 4-1. As the Turkish organization is only trailing behind Vitality by one point, FUT can book a flight to Shanghai by simply reaching the top four.
Solid chance
Team Heretics (12 pts)
Team Heretics have been eliminated from the Play-ins after two losses to Tier Two teams, separated by a close win against a struggling NAVI. While the fate of Los Niños’ is now out of their hands, the Spanish organization can still qualify to Champions. The team needs Vitality and FUT to reach the Grand Finals while none of BBL, TL, or EF reach the top four.
BBL Esports (11 pts)
After a first-place finish in Kickoff, BBL has struggled to replicate that success and find its place in the meta. Now, in the final stretch of regional play, the Ascension-winning roster has found a bye into playoffs, just one win away from finals weekend in Barcelona. To ensure a return to the global stage on points, BBL needs Vitality and FUT to finish in the top two, while finding a top-four finish of its own.
Odds Are Low
Team Liquid (9 pts)
Team Liquid, a staple team of international group stages over the last year, broke its streak of international appearances after bowing out of the Stage 1 playoffs without a win. With nine points and a bye to the playoffs, Liquid needs a top-four finish, a Vitality-FUT faceoff in the Grand Final, and neither BBL nor Heretics in the top four to qualify to Shanghai through points.
Related: The end of the 2026 road for Wolves, FPX, and DRG
Eternal Fire (8 pts)
With eight points, Eternal Fire has a tough road ahead of it. After finishing with a 2-3 record in Group Omega, this needs FUT and Vitality to reach the top two while continuing its run through the Play-Ins and then through the Playoffs to the top four. The team also needs BBL and Liquid not to reach the top four themselves. The Turkish organization is currently one win away from reaching the Playoffs in the upper bracket, with a match against FUT later today.
Top 2 or Bust
Karmine Corp
Karmine Corp is already mathematically eliminated from qualifying to Shanghai via points. However, the team has been on an upswing of form, topping Group Omega with a 4-1 record. While the KC players need a top-two finish to qualify, their bye to the upper semifinals of the Playoffs leaves the team just two wins away from the Grand Final.
Enterprise Esports, Fire Flux Esports
Enterprise and Fire Flux have started their journeys in VCT EMEA at a blistering pace. Both teams have dropped only one map to tier one teams and are playing their next match against each other on Saturday to qualify as one of the top two seeds from Play-ins. The winner of this match will need to keep this pace against either Liquid or Vitality as they continue their maiden runs in VCT.
Joblife, Eintracht Frankfurt
Joblife and Eintracht Frankfurt have had comparably tougher starts to the Play-ins. Both teams are one loss away from the end of their year. If either of these teams wants to reach Champions, they will have to prove themselves by winning seven matches in a row and earning a spot in the Grand Final. In the lower bracket, both teams have won their first two elimination matches, with JL picking up wins over PCIFIC and FNATIC, while SGE has taken two clean 2-0 victories over M8 and TH.
Already Out
Gentle Mates, Natus Vincere, PCIFIC Esports, GIANTX
Following first-round exits, Gentle Mates, NAVI, PCF, and GX are seeing an early end to their 2026 season after early eliminations from the Play-ins. Gentle Mates, after using a breakout Kickoff to qualify for Masters Santiago, will see out the year at home. Notably, PCF set a record for the longest loss streak in VCT, with the organization losing 15 VCT matches in a row and showing the true meaning of the “minimum match theory.”
FNATIC
After losses against Enterprise and Joblife, Project: Hail Mary has been shut down. FNATIC has been eliminated from the EMEA Play-ins. As a result of the team’s uncharacteristic underperformance throughout 2026, FNC has only racked up eight points and is thus unable to qualify to Champions through points. This marks the first time the organization has missed out on Champions since the inaugural Champions Berlin in 2021.
