Photo by Riot Games/VCT China
With Stage 2 of VCT China coming to an exquisite end, the region has finalized its representatives for Champions Shanghai, the final international event of the year held on home soil. The teams that will get an opportunity to compete are Edward Gaming, Xi Lai Gaming, TYLOO, and JD Gaming.
The teams going to Shanghai are varied in experience, with EDG and XLG both being no stranger to the international stage while TYLOO and JDG are both stepping onto it for the first time.
Here is a look at the four VCT CN representatives and what you can expect from them!
Edward Gaming
EDG was the first team to qualify for Champions Shanghai and is by far the most experienced of the four teams.
Throughout its entire history, EDG has only ever missed out on one international, that being Masters Toronto in 2025. The team also holds the only international trophy in all of CN, winning Champions Seoul back in 2024.
The roster is well known and well loved, with fans all around the globe cheering for their success.
EDG has retained the same core of four players, CHICHOO, nobody, ZmjjKK, and Smoggy, since 2022. The four of them have had great success in their careers and know the feeling of lifting a trophy well.
They are all extremely talented, with CHICHOO, nobody, and ZmjjKK all ranking in the top 3 of their respective roles during this year’s players poll held in China. CHICHOO had arguably the most impressive result of the three, placing third in the Controller role and first in the Sentinel role.
Jieni7 has been with the roster since Stage 1 of 2025, being called up from the academy team and going between being a member of the main roster and acting as the sixth player throughout his time in Tier 1. He was able to lift his first domestic trophy as a member of the starting five this year.
However, despite the improvement in his performance, it seems as though he may return to the bench for the remainder of the year. This is because of the EDG’s latest addition to the EDG roster, Korean import player stew.
stew has spent the majority of his career in China, playing for Rare Atom and JDG in the past. When he left JDG at the end of Stage 1 this year, many speculated that he would either return to Pacific or take a break due to a wrist injury he had sustained. His signing with EDG shocked many.
He will now work with the talented Korean coaching duo of Autumn and indigo who were brought into EDG this year as well as signed, who has been working with the team since Stage 1. stew will also get the opportunity to play with ZmjjKK, a player who he has shown much admiration toward in the past.
This year has been full of ups and downs for the team, finally winning a domestic tournament again in Stage 1 followed by placing third at Masters London only to have its worst ever performance in CN during Stage 2, not even qualifying to playoffs.
Despite the poor performance in Stage 2, the success that the team had earlier in the year granted them a spot in Champions through points, being at the top of the region.
How the year will end for EDG and whether the adjustments made to the roster will pay off remains to be seen.
Xi Lai Gaming
XLG has been extremely impressive since it ascended to VCT CN at the end of 2024, quickly proving to the world that it could be much more than a small internet cafe from Harbin.
From qualifying for two international events in its first year in Tier 1 to finishing 5th-6th at Masters London, its best international performance yet, the team has shown that it should not be underestimated.
At the moment, Rarga, happywei, and NoMan remain from the 2025 roster, with Rarga and happywei lifting the Ascension trophy that started XLG’s Tier 1 run.
hvoya has also remained the head coach of the team, as he was last year. Joining him in the coaching booth are steady, who has been with XLG for the entire 2026 season, as well as Fayde, who returned to the team before Masters London and reunites with Lysoar, who he worked with while on the 2025 Wolves Esports roster.
XLG’s roster is rounded out with rookie in-game leader WsLeo, who has proven his worth on the big stage, earning the title of Initiator of the year in China.
The starting five of this squad has stayed the same throughout the year; however, XLG did bring on a sixth member before Stage 2: Sharks.
After being called up from the academy roster, Sharks played in XLG’s Stage 2seeding match, showing a very impressive performance for his debut and helping the team defeat TYLOO 2-0.
Despite a rather lackluster 5th-6th finish in Stage 2, the team qualified through to Champions Shanghai with the points it had amassed throughout the year. This final tournament will determine the ending to a rather impressive year XLG has had.
TYLOO
As one of the two newcomers to the international stage, TYLOO is perhaps more of a question mark than the earlier two teams. The team will go into Champions Shanghai as the first seed after lifting the Stage 2 trophy.
The only member of this roster that has been to an international in the past is SiuFatBB, the new IGL of the squad. Joining after sword9’s return to the coaching seat, SiuFatBB became the piece that the team needed to surpass its previous limits.
Many are excited to see the IGL who led WOL on its Cinderella run at Masters Toronto finally return to the international stage. Despite his absence for over a year, his influence and energy that he brings to the stage have not been forgotten by the global audience.
TYLOO’s core members, Scales and slowly, will finally get the opportunity to show their skills internationally for the first time. Both have had impressive performances domestically, but it was never enough to bring them to a Masters or Champions until now.
Scales has been with TYLOO since June 2025, being an experienced and consistent part of the squad. He has been able to show up for the team when he is needed most, and he will now be able to show his resilience on the global stage.
Coming from the CS: GO scene, slowly has always been one of the top players in China. His ability to adapt to the needs of the team, such as learning the Duelist role in 2025 to fill a roster gap, is extremely impressive.
After not being able to reach the heights he was capable of for years, slowly will finally be given a chance to show the world what he is made of. He has gained much recognition already, being the Finals MVP of Stage 2 as well as the region’s voted player of the year.
The remaining spots in the starting roster are filled by rookie players Splash and Erv, both of whom debuted on the Tier 1 stage during Kickoff this year. Of the two, Erv definitely took the stranger route on the path of becoming a professional player.
The only team he had ever played for previously was LANDODGERS, playing a few matches in the Valorant China National Tournament with them through June and July of 2025. After this, he transferred to TYLOO, immediately becoming a Tier 1 player.
The most widely spread portion of Erv’s past actually has nothing to do with Valorant or any other esport, for that matter. Before his games with LAN and later TYLOO, Erv was a medical student. Because of this, some questioned his signing to the team. Despite this, he was able to quiet those doubts with his performance, having a strong debut game and playing well consistently after that.
In contrast to him, Splash has been playing in the Valorant scene since 2023, stepping into Tier 1 for the first time this year as he finally met the age requirement. He showed almost no nerves being on the big stage, top-fragging during his debut performance and putting himself in the spotlight.
He has continued to be a force to be reckoned with throughout this year, having an amazing performance to earn them their trophy and winning Duelist of the year in the CN poll.
xihe is the sixth member of the team, joining after playing in Evolution Act 2 in place of sword9. Although he has yet to play a VCT match, he was able to lift the trophy with the rest of the roster at the end of Stage 2.
The team is led by head coach hypnotizing, who is joined by his assistant coach Billyo, both of whom have long histories of coaching teams in China.
From being eliminated early on in the playoffs during Kickoff and Stage 1 to lifting the trophy in Stage 2, TYLOO has shown significant growth throughout the year. The question is whether this will be enough to make its mark on the international stage.
JD Gaming
Another rookie on the international stage, JDG has finally broken free of its spot in the middle of the CN pack to become one of its representatives ahead of Champions Shanghai. With its best-ever finish in the team’s history, JDG will go into the tournament as China’s second seed.
Two players on the team, Yuicaw and BerLIN, have experienced internationals in the past. Both have had long careers in Valorant, with Yuicaw having played on various teams while BerLIN had previously only played for FunPlus Phoenix.
Yuicaw was on the fabled Wolves team in 2025 that finished third at Masters. He had also previously attended LOCK//IN São Paulo and Champions Los Angeles with FPX in 2023.
During the latter two tournaments mentioned, Yuicaw had played alongside BerLIN the same way he is now. Despite Yuicaw leaving FPX in 2024, he and BerLIN remained friends and have expressed joy at playing together once more.
After Yuicaw left the team, BerLIN and FPX went on to attend all three internationals in 2024, giving him an abundance of experience on the global stage. He joined JDG right before Stage 2 this year, becoming the IGL of the team and helping it achieve a second-place finish.
The rest of the team will be attending an international for the first time, being able to have this experience in their home country.
Of the three, jkuro has the most experience in Tier 1, having played with JDG since the beginning of 2024. He is currently the longest-tenured player on the roster, being a relatively consistent player throughout his career.
The remaining two players, zhe and crownfisher, are both still new to the VCT stage as a whole, with zhe having his debut at the beginning of the year and crownfisher only joining before Stage 2.
zhe was the more well-known of the two before joining JDG, having played for Rare Atom in 2025 and achieving second in Ascension that year. His performance drew attention, leading JDG to sign him for the 2026 season.
crownfisher, on the other hand, was a call-up from the team’s academy roster. This year, he played in Evolution Act 2 with the team before being promoted to the main roster. Various members of JDG have stated that his improvement since being called up has been tremendous and that he has grown into a very capable player.
Head coach bail, who was voted as the region’s coach of the year, will return to the international stage with his new team. He is joined by assistant coach Desire, who has accompanied him throughout this year.
After completing an entirely unexpected dark horse run of Stage 2, JDG will step out onto the global stage in Shanghai. Whether it is glory or shame that awaits the team is unknown.
Champions Shanghai
With Champions Shanghai quickly approaching, the teams, dates, groups, and first matches have all been finalized.
The champion of Stage 2, TYLOO, will play G2 Esports, the No. 4 seed of Americas, as its first opponent in Group C. Pacific’s No. 3, Paper Rex, and EMEA’s No. 2, Team Liquid, will play in the same group.
Second-seeded JDG will be in Group A, facing FUT Esports, EMEA’s third seed, for its first match. The other teams in the group are 100 Thieves, who are the top seed of Americas, and T1, the fourth seed of Pacific.
No. 3 seed EDG will play in Group B, with its first match against the No. 2 of Americas, LOUD. Global Esports, Pacific’s top seed, and Vitality, EMEA’s fourth, will join them in the group.
Going in as China’s fourth seed, XLG will play in Group D against Karmine Corp, EMEA’s top seed. Joining them will be Nongshim RedForce, Pacific’s second seed, and NRG, Americas’ third seed.
All that is left to do now is to wait for September 24, when the biggest tournament of the year will begin!
