The underdog run is officially complete, as JD Gaming JD Gaming China Rank #6 jkuro Yong Haochong (杨浩聪) zhe Niu Zhe (牛哲) Yuicaw Huang Yung-chieh (黃湧傑) crownfisher Li Ao (李翱) BerLIN Zhang Bolin (張柏霖) has qualified for Valorant Champions through the upper bracket finals of the VCT China 2026 Stage 2 playoffs, defeating Bilibili Gaming Bilibili Gaming China Rank #5 whzy Wang Haozhe (王昊哲) rushia Wang Xiaojie (王晓杰) nephh Marcus Tan yilai Gu Yiming (顾依铭) Knight Liu Yuxiang (刘宇翔) bud Yang Renyu (杨韧余) FT Yan Shuaibo (闫帅博) 2-0. Just after, TYLOO TYLOO China Rank #2 splash Moses Christophe Jonathan Scales Zhang Zhen (张震) Erv Shen Zhiwei slowly Kelun Sun (孙科伦) SiuFatBB Pong Gaa Hei (庞加曦) xihe Peng Wenbo (彭文博) swept Nova Esports Nova Esports China Rank #3 qiutiaN Bijan Moeinzadeh (慕英毕强) cb Wang Qingchuan (王庆川) Ezeir Zhao Zejun (赵泽骏) GuanG Guang Honglin (光洪霖) swagzor Mikhail Vaniushin to remain in the running, only needing a win against Bilibili in the lower bracket finals to also reach Shanghai.

JD Gaming reaches Champions through Play-Ins and Playoffs

It's official: the first Play-In team in 2026 to qualify for Champions Shanghai is JD Gaming. This sweep over Bilibili Gaming marks JDG's first international appearance, and what a time to do so, as the team will see local fans live in Shanghai.

Starting on Lotus, JDG opted for double-Sentinel of Vyse and Chamber, with jkuro solo-Duelist on Raze. BLG instead ran double-Duelist with Raze and Waylay, but starting on defense wasn't ideal. JDG took the first pistol and converted the bonus to jump ahead 4-0, and jkuro stopped any potential first-half comebacks from BLG with a 14-kill half.

Knight led BLG to three-round wins at the half, but another pistol win and a bonus conversion from JDG put BLG down 12-3. BLG managed to take four rounds back, but BerLIN closed out the map 13-7.

Map two, Split, was a double-Duelist matchup, with both teams running Waylay and double-Controller. Once again, JDG managed to take the first pistol and bonus of the map to instantly place pressure on BLG. On the attack side, Yuicaw on Viper was immaculate, ending the 8-4 half with 15 kills and 100% KAST.

After yet another pistol and bonus conversion, JDG's fourth of the four attempts in the series, which placed BLG in all-or-nothing territory, down 11-4. Just like Lotus, BLG clawed back some rounds thanks to the talent of rushia , but the comeback didn't materialize. JDG ended victorious on Split with a 13-8 map score, sweeping the series 2-0 and reaching the playoff grand finals, securing a slot at Champions Shanghai.

TYLOO stays red hot entering lower finals, eliminates Nova

In the matchup between the two best teams in the Stage 2 group stage, experience mattered, as SiuFatBB and splash led their squad to a final series to see if Shanghai is in the cards.

Ascent began with both teams running variations of double-Duelist with Phoenix, and this was a Phoenix masterclass from splash from start to finish. TYLOO began with a pistol and bonus conversion win, something that viewers had now seen in every half so far this day. Any time a team converts a bonus, a lead at the half is near guaranteed, as both splash and slowly competed well against their Duelist counterparts to reach an 8-4 lead at the half.

Moving to the attack side, TYLOO pushed to map point with another pistol and bonus conversion, up 12-4, and closed out map one quickly at 13-7.

Summit was the end of the bonus conversion chain that occurred this day, with Nova sticking to double-Duelist but moving swagzor to Waylay. The near-mirror comp from TYLOO failed to repeat the strong start from map one, as GuanG and cb helped Nova earn a pistol win and a 7-5 lead at halftime.

Yet, moving to the attack, TYLOO were unleashed, and the talent spurred the squad ahead with a pistol win. No bonus conversion was needed as the gun rounds easily leaned toward TYLOO, with splash once again closing out the map 13-10 and confirming the 2-0 sweep.

With these results, JDG waits in the grand finals for the victor of the lower finals. The lower finals are between TYLOO and Bilibili Gaming, and the stakes are straightforward: win and in.

Not only are these two teams fighting for the slot at the biggest event of the year, but a local one in Shanghai, with plenty of their respective fans hoping to cheer them on live.