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VALORANT continues to grow as one of the leading esports games of the decade. Before heading to Champions at the end of the season, teams will be fighting for glory once again at the VCT 2022: Stage 2 Masters – Copenhagen. Read on to see who we think will stand at the top in Denmark.
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The VALORANT Masters is a series of prestigious tournaments whose primary purpose is to feed teams into Champions — the equivalent of Dota’s The International or League of Legends’ Worlds. Because of that, you’ll see a lot of action-packed gameplay as teams aim to finish at the top in this vibrant esports event.
VALORANT Masters betting is fairly similar to how you would bet on other VALORANT tournaments, but here’s a quick refresher on the subject matter. This process also applies to the VALORANT Champions event later in the year. Here’s what it looks like:
Bookies come in various shapes and sizes. Their odds may differ greatly from each other, as may their betting markets. It’s also a good idea to check their supported payment methods. After you’ve gathered all this information, compare the bookies and select which one you want to go with.
Creating an account is, in most cases, fairly simple and quick. All you have to do is register your account using your real information (important for receiving betting bonuses) and confirm your email.
There are numerous payment methods that are used in the esports betting world. Some of them include PayPal, Bitcoin, credit cards, and Skrill. These are just some of the most popular but there are dozens more. Make sure you’ve selected a bookie that supports your chosen payment method.
You won’t be a successful punter without knowing why and what you’re betting on. Knowing when to place a specific bet and on which team (or player) is crucial to maximizing your chances of winning. Always do your due diligence and explore the background information of the tournament you want to bet on.
Don’t beeline for the large money plays just yet. It takes time to get good at betting so take your time. Start with just one or two bets, none too risky, and see how it goes. Eventually, you’ll become more knowledgeable of the process and feel okay with making riskier plays.
Now that we’ve taken the basic elements of VCT 2022 betting out of the way, it’s time to look at some betting-specific info.
The betting markets themselves haven’t been set up by the bookies just yet, but here are a couple that will make their way into the betting market ‘roster’.
In VCT Masters, Moneyline bets are as easy as it gets. Since all group stage matches are held in best-of-threes, simply predict which team gets to two map wins first, and voilà. Coming into the finals however, you’ll be asked to predict which teams get to three map wins first as these matches are held in best-of-fives. This is the perfect type of bet for those just starting to get into VALORANT.
Outrights are a simple betting market that requires just a basic dose of research. Still, due to their nature, they are inherently risky. This will bring you greater rewards, but you have pretty low chances of winning. With outrights, you’ll be placing a bet on the team you think will win the entire tournament. That’s it!
Total betting is the next step for those who want to up their game. It works in the same way as over/under betting where you predict if the game will go over or under a score or metric. In VALORANT, total betting refers to predicting one of two things. Either if a series will go over or under a certain number of games or if the game at hand will reach over or under a certain number of rounds.
As its name suggests, handicap betting puts a handicap in the favor of the match by requiring them to win by a set margin for it to be considered a win. Just like in total betting, you can place handicap bets for maps and rounds as well. Handicap bets are easier explained by example.
For instance, a +1.5 map handicap for a best-of-three series means that the team you’re betting on only needs to win one (1) game to secure your payout. On the other hand, a -1.5 map handicap means that they need to win in a straight 2-0. This puts the burden on the stronger team to win convincingly when compared to the +1.5 map handicap which doesn’t require the team you’re betting on to win the series.
Lastly, we have propositional betting which is one of the more difficult betting formats. In VALORANT, there are occurrences in the game that do not necessarily decide the win such as first bloods, the outcome of pistol rounds, overtime, and more. Through prop bets, you can put your game knowledge to the test and try to guess what will exactly go on in-game.
Be wary; this kind of betting needs a lot of research. Still, the payoff is higher so it’s perfect for punters that want to take on some risk. Predicting who will first plant the spike and if a player will be able to ace the opposing team are among the few ways you can place prop bets. They are also called ‘special bets’.
There are currently no odds to be included in this article because the bookies have not yet set up their respective betting markets. Once they do, we will update the article.
VALORANT was released on June 2, 2020 when shortly after its release, was already being hailed as the next billion-dollar esports franchise. As players started populating their servers, VALORANT launched their esports initiative the VALORANT Champions Tour which started in 2021.
The international circuit starts at the grassroots with the VALORANT Challengers Series where teams and players can register and compete for a spot at the VALORANT Masters.
In VALORANT Masters, the best of the best esports teams are pitted against one another to see who stands atop among all the esports countries. The Masters tourneys fill the same shoes that Majors do in games like Dota 2 and CS:GO, allowing teams the opportunity to earn their keep, make their name, and, at the same time, qualify for the most coveted tournaments of their respective esport. For VALORANT, this means qualification for Champions – the title’s premier international tournament held at the end of the year.
The VALORANT Champions Tour is a set of tournaments divided into two stages with a final championship tournament held at the end of every year. In the past year, we saw North America and Europe in a constant tug of war for dominance in the VCT. This year, Stage 1 saw teams go head-to-head in Reykjavík, Iceland last April with OpTic Gaming reclaiming the throne for North America.
Your winners of #VALORANTChampions, @AcendClub! pic.twitter.com/uRQeb1LmwZ — VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) December 12, 2021
Your winners of #VALORANTChampions, @AcendClub! pic.twitter.com/uRQeb1LmwZ
— VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) December 12, 2021
Middle into the year, Stage 2 Masters – Copenhagen will see all-new and familiar teams alike compete for circuit points to qualify for Champions which will be later held in September. This tournament will set the tone for which teams become the favorites heading into Champions.
Every Masters, 12 teams qualify through a rigorous series of esports tournaments called the Challenger series. The number of teams representing each region changes based on their performance internationally.
Following the format of Stage 1 Masters – Reykjavík, eight of the twelve invited teams will be divided into two groups with four teams each. Meanwhile, the rest will be seeded directly into the playoffs to face who qualifies out of the group stage. These teams will then fight their way up one series at a time to get their chance at a Masters trophy.
As a major international tournament, Masters Copenhagen will be featuring a hefty prize pool for teams to fight over aside from the circuit points they can receive from placing in the tournament. Until now however, the exact division between placements has yet to be decided. This article will be further updated when news is released.
In the past months, teams have been viciously competing for a spot at the upcoming Masters Copenhagen. The competition is as stiff as ever as we see new faces rise up against the mainstays in their own regions.
Currently, only the last slot from the VCT 2022: South America Stage 2 Challengers Playoffs remains unfinished. This article will be updated shortly after once the Stage 2 Challenger series has concluded by June 30, 2022.
The VALORANT Masters Copenhagen will start by July 10, 2022 and will be held across two (2) weeks until its Grand Finals on July 24, 2022. The tournament will be played offline in Copenhagen, Denmark with games to be streamed through Riot’s official and partnered platforms.
Riot will be accommodating live audiences at Copenhagen in time for the later stages of the playoffs. It will be held at the Forum in Copenhagen, an indoor arena in Frederiksberg, Denmark. The schedule of games is posted below.
The Stage 2 – Masters Copenhagen is the last major international tournament before Champions which is set to take place from September 2 to 18, 2022. But before Champions, there will be a Last Chance Qualifiers set somewhere in August for teams to secure their last second ticket to Istanbul, Turkey.
Because of how Masters Reykjavík turned out, the betting odds for VALORANT Masters Copenhagen will be all topsy turvy as everyone scrambles to figure out who is the best of the best at Denmark. However, there are definitely a few teams that have caught our eye leading into the awaited tourney.
Looking at groups already, it looks like we already have our Top 8 teams raring to go. If trends are to be followed, we should see the same familiar faces coming into playoffs with the seeding at hand.
Qualifying in the first group, tournament favorites OpTic Gaming and LOUD will hope to make yet another deep run at a VALORANT Masters. For Optic, they have been consistent performers all throughout Stage 2 and were largely dominant heading into playoffs. However, they had sort of a hitch in the Grand Finals due to their players testing positive for COVID. We expect them to bounce back even stronger in Copenhagen. Meanwhile, LOUD continue to dominate Brazil going undefeated in Stage 2. Having been so close to the trophy in Masters should be enough to motivate the team to go even further in the upcoming masters.
For Guild, it is the team’s first international masters since they rebuilt their roster in the 2021 season. Although they had a Top 4 finish in Stage 1, this was only in Europe back then. However, with veteran players like Jose Luis “koldamenta” Aranguren Herrero, previously from G2 Esports, they could easily take names in the Group Stage. But along with KRÜ, who have yet to perform remotely well internationally, they have a tall task ahead of them to upset top dogs like OpTic and LOUD.
At the top of Group B we expect Northeption to erupt onto the scene after they took down Zeta to qualify for Copenhagen. Japan was the most watched region in Stage 2 with a live audience at the Saitama Super Arena owing to the rivalry of Northeption and Zeta Division. However, what many thought would have been a back-and-forth series after a 1-1 start only ended up with a one-sided 3-1 Grand Finals with Northeption coming out on top. This team is definitely a team to watch in Copenhagen.
As of right now, FunPlus Phoenix have yet to announce if they will be playing with subs heading into Copenhagen due to travel restrictions. As such, we will be placing them at third for the time being. However, should they compete with their original roster, they could easily tie DRX for second and give them a hard time of qualifying. DRX remains as the sole hope of Korea and only hope to seek even greater heights this time round. And while XERXIA is a top tier team that can compete with the best, they might just end up short against the tougher competition at Copenhagen as seen when they almost qualified for playoffs in this year’s Masters Reykjavík.
While it is true that regions like Japan, Southeast Asia, and Brazil have been on the come up since Masters Reykjavík, the odds are still in favor of the more experienced veteran squads from North America and Europe who have consistently shown up when it matters. However, we can’t just look away from teams like Paper Rex and LOUD anymore as they have forcibly put themselves on the radar with their standout performances in the previous Masters.
Fnatic returns to Masters Copenhagen with a vengeance after a disappointing run at Masters Reykjavík last April. After bowing out of groups 0-2, they made it their mission in Stage 2 to rebuild their roster with the addition of upcoming talent in 17-year-old Emir Ali “Alfajer” Beder. In the EMEA Stage 2 Challengers, Fnatic ran over the competition with their 5-0 start in the Group Stage. After Groups, they cruised through the playoffs never losing a series and even sweeping the Stage 1 Challengers champions FunPlus Phoenix 3-0.
🏆 YOUR #VCTEMEA CHAMPIONS 🏆 🥇 @misticJK 🥇 @derkeps 🥇 @Alfajervl 🥇 @OfficialBoaster 🥇 @FearothVAL pic.twitter.com/vc8kOgHvD0 — VALORANT Champions Tour EMEA (@valesports_emea) June 26, 2022
🏆 YOUR #VCTEMEA CHAMPIONS 🏆
🥇 @misticJK 🥇 @derkeps 🥇 @Alfajervl 🥇 @OfficialBoaster 🥇 @FearothVAL pic.twitter.com/vc8kOgHvD0
— VALORANT Champions Tour EMEA (@valesports_emea) June 26, 2022
In their run, you can see that newcomer Alfajer led the charge with his impeccable Raze gameplay owing up to a 271.6 ACS. But what’s great about the prodigy is that he can play sentinels like Killjoy and Chamber when his team needs him as well, proving to be the missing piece that Fnatic has needed to truly shine. Together, Fnatic dismantled their opponents in their 8-0 run with incredible speed – finishing maps in an average of just 20.41 rounds! As the team has mentioned on broadcast, this might just be the time that Fnatic can redeem itself after being so close to the first-ever Masters trophy last year.
XSET have finally done it after a year of always falling short when it mattered. The stars have aligned for XSET as they become the North American champions and earn a direct seed for Playoffs. After picking up homegrown talent Matthew “Cryocells” Panganiban at the end of 2021, XSET was looking to come back stronger in the 2022 VCT circuit. Although they got close at 4th place in Stage 1, the team still needed time to gel to get to their form today.
Your North America Stage 2 Challengers Champions! 🏆 🥇 @AYRINval 🥇 @BcJFPS 🥇 @Cryocells_ 🥇 @dephhgg 🥇 @zekkenVAL 🥇 @SyykoNT 🥇 @DrewSparkR6 #RepTheSet❌ #VCT pic.twitter.com/Bm8ncwX5lM — XSET (@XSET) June 26, 2022
Your North America Stage 2 Challengers Champions! 🏆
🥇 @AYRINval 🥇 @BcJFPS 🥇 @Cryocells_ 🥇 @dephhgg 🥇 @zekkenVAL 🥇 @SyykoNT 🥇 @DrewSparkR6 #RepTheSet❌ #VCT pic.twitter.com/Bm8ncwX5lM
— XSET (@XSET) June 26, 2022
In Stage 2, they topped their group and easily made their way to the Upper Bracket Final after taking down 100 Thieves along the way. And although they lost to OpTic in the upper bracket, they learned from their mistakes and got themselves a rematch in the Grand Finals. In the finals, they almost got a 3-0 sweep if it weren’t for a 9-12 comeback from OpTic in the first map. However, the next three maps would see XSET come to life with 17-year-old Zachary “zekken” Patrone with a massive 1.82 K/D and 298 ACS. With his versatility playing agents from Neon, Jett, Raze, and Sova, XSET had the upper hand, upsetting the clear favorites in OpTic 3-1.
LOUD came so close in Masters Reykjavík when they almost made their dream run upsetting every Western team all the way up until the Grand Finals. LOUD came from left field in the past Masters with an aggression only matched by their namesake. With clutch players like Erick “aspas” Santos and a consistent initiator in Gustavo “Sacy” Rossi, LOUD has forced their way into the conversation of contenders for the trophy at Copenhagen. In Stage 2, we saw the Brazilian superteam do over their 1st place finish at Stage 1 Challengers sweeping Ninjas in Pyjamas 3-0 back-and-forth in the finals.
Com um sonoro 3 x 0, a @LOUDgg é bicampeã do #VCTBR! 🔥🔥🔥 🟢 https://t.co/09ERpx9gRE | https://t.co/rX2l1cRusd pic.twitter.com/cngtP4DZFq — VALORANT Champions Tour Brazil (@valesports_br) June 26, 2022
Com um sonoro 3 x 0, a @LOUDgg é bicampeã do #VCTBR! 🔥🔥🔥
🟢 https://t.co/09ERpx9gRE | https://t.co/rX2l1cRusd pic.twitter.com/cngtP4DZFq
— VALORANT Champions Tour Brazil (@valesports_br) June 26, 2022
In Copenhagen, expect them to give that same explosive gameplay on the server with picks like aspas’ signature Raze. In the final map, aspas played out of his mind with 3k’s after 3k’s racking up his ACS to an impressive 272.9 with the highest average damage per round and Kill to Death ratio in the league. And in Stage 2, it looks like Felipe “Less” Basso has even stepped up behind aspas to make LOUD an even more formidable foe in the main event. With the experience they already have under their belt, it’s not hard to see Brazil maybe lift the trophy once and for all in Copenhagen.
Once again, Jason “f0rsakeN” Susanto and the dominant Paper Rex will be making their way back to Masters Copenhagen hoping to finish what they started. After slowly building up their confidence at Berlin, Paper Rex came into Masters Reykjavík taking everyone off guard after upsetting The Guard and the then first EMEA seed G2 Esports. In Copenhagen, the Southeast Asian team will be coming in to prove that their performance wasn’t just a flimsy stroke of luck.
WE ARE YOUR #VCT APAC CHAMPIONS!! 🦖🥳 GG’s Well played @XERXIAESPORTS , we’ll see you in Copenhagen. LET’S GO PAPER REX TEAM! #VCT #pprxteam pic.twitter.com/KmGcukTPkR — Paper Rex (@pprxteam) June 26, 2022
WE ARE YOUR #VCT APAC CHAMPIONS!! 🦖🥳
GG’s Well played @XERXIAESPORTS , we’ll see you in Copenhagen.
LET’S GO PAPER REX TEAM! #VCT #pprxteam pic.twitter.com/KmGcukTPkR
— Paper Rex (@pprxteam) June 26, 2022
As a statement to their form, Paper Rex blazed through the APAC Challengers where they took down fellow qualifying squad XERXIA in a no-contest 3-0 sweep. With a 13-8 on Icebox, a 13-4 on Fracture, and a 13-5 on Breeze, Paper Rex look like they still have the same razor sharp aim that led them deep into the playoffs last Masters. Of course, leading the charge is none other than f0rsakeN with an impressive 1.48 K/D and a 284.7 ACS. But this time, he’s added new agents to his arsenal playing Chamber and Neon alongside his trademark Jett and oddball Yoru. Paper Rex is the wild card coming into Copenhagen and teams will be amiss to underestimate them come July.
Despite falling second once again in the VCT 2022: North America Stage 2 Challengers, it seems that we’ve already seen this pattern once before. OpTic fall second in NA, only to get back up even stronger in Masters. In Copenhagen, we expect OpTic to perform up to their standards seeing that Pujan “FNS” Mehta and Austin “crashies” Roberts should have already recovered after testing positive for the coronavirus leading up to the Finals week.
Onwards to Copenhagen, GG’s to XSET on a hard fought series. #GreenWall pic.twitter.com/qvUEkEjIXc — OpTic Gaming™ (@OpTic) June 26, 2022
Onwards to Copenhagen, GG’s to XSET on a hard fought series. #GreenWall pic.twitter.com/qvUEkEjIXc
— OpTic Gaming™ (@OpTic) June 26, 2022
But even in their form, they were able to convincingly take down the reigning champions XSET 3-1 in the Upper Bracket Finals. Imagine what they could do in Copenhagen! With the El Diablo Jaccob “yay” Whiteaker transitioning to a one-trick Chamber in the past month, teams will be pressed to go past OpTic’s defenses with this man on the backlines. Meanwhile, Jimmy “Marved” Nguyen returning to Astra allows OpTic to play a breadth of strategies with her diverse kit. OpTic changing up their strategies in Stage 2 bodes well for the North American team as it shows that they are continuing to adapt. OpTic is definitely not a team to be underestimated come Copenhagen as they can easily continue their streak as the best VALORANT team leading up to Champions.
VALORANT is an ever-changing game and given its nature as a tactical shooter, the limit of its strategic diversity is endless. Across the past year, we saw agents like Skye, Astra, Kay/O, Chamber, and Neon being introduced and first picked up in professional play. These agents drastically changed the way VALORANT was played and ushered in an era where winning your duels wasn’t the tried-and-true strategy to get on top. You had to do more — properly timing entries, utilizing smart rotations, and the like.
Teams that couldn’t adapt, fell. In Copenhagen, expect to see the same pattern continue as we saw mainstay names such as Team Liquid and Fnatic fail to make it past teams who innovated and caught up with the times. As patches come and go, be wary of how the meta (most effective tactics available) changes accordingly!
So, you’ve gotten a sense of how the team plays and how you think they will perform in an upcoming tournament. But to be sure, make sure to check platforms such as THESPIKE.GG, Valor Buff, and VLR.gg to get an idea of how teams exactly play their game. You can use these platforms to see helpful statistics such as whether teams close out their wins in 2-0 sweeps or exactly how many rounds it takes for them to win a game.
📣 #VCTEMEA Top 5 Rated Players 🥇 @derkeps 🥈 @Alfajervl 🥉 @leojannesson 4. @trexxfps 5. @nAts__ss 📣 #VCTEMEA Top 5 KAST % Players 🥇 @koldamenta 🥈 @leojannesson 🥉 @FearothVAL 4. @nukkye 5. @Turkovalorant All stats 🔽https://t.co/WmFD3uzF4h pic.twitter.com/GMUImR3rjm — THESPIKE.GG (@THESPIKEGG) June 20, 2022
📣 #VCTEMEA Top 5 Rated Players 🥇 @derkeps 🥈 @Alfajervl 🥉 @leojannesson 4. @trexxfps 5. @nAts__ss
📣 #VCTEMEA Top 5 KAST % Players 🥇 @koldamenta 🥈 @leojannesson 🥉 @FearothVAL 4. @nukkye 5. @Turkovalorant
All stats 🔽https://t.co/WmFD3uzF4h pic.twitter.com/GMUImR3rjm
— THESPIKE.GG (@THESPIKEGG) June 20, 2022
Taking it a step further, this can come in handy for special bets. By knowing a team’s best performing players, you can make an educated guess on which players will have the most kills or the highest K/D in a match.
Depending on the tournament you’re betting on, whether it’s Challengers, Masters, Game Changers, or Champions, each event has its own format. Even across Masters, the past three (3) Masters from Reykjavík to Berlin and Reykjavík again had different formats from one another. Whether it’s GSL-style, double-elimination, groups, you should be researching what format is the tournament you want to bet on.
Although it’s the best team that rises in the end, only certain teams will make it deep into the tournament based on formatting. If, by chance, the top teams are on one side of the bracket, then that means one of them won’t be making it into the semis and grand finals. Be careful with your bets on outright tournament winners as the likes for the unexpected outcome can certainly happen. Because as we’ve seen for ourselves in Reykjavík, it appears that we’re heading towards an age that it can be anyone’s game.
You can watch every second of the VCT 2022: Stage 2 Masters – Copenhagen on the official Riot Games VALORANT Esports website, Twitch and Youtube channels. Alternatively, you may find some bookie websites with live streams on site for quick and easy access to streams while betting.
As of now, our favorite for the Stage 2 Masters champions would have to be the EMEA’s Fnatic who have been so dominant in a region with such tough competition. Closely behind them is Brazil’s LOUD, North America’s XSET, and APAC’s Paper Rex who have proven to be quite the contenders in their own regions. However, never count out the reigning champs OpTic Gaming who have been a consistent top performer in the past year.
We recommend LOOT.BET for moneyline bets, Rivalry for prop and total bets, and Pinnacle for handicap betting!
You can watch Masters Copenhagen as it airs on VALORANT Esports, Twitch, and YouTube.
As it stands, our Top 3 would have to be Fnatic, LOUD, and OpTic Gaming. But be always on the lookout for up-and-comers because the gap is closing!
The highly awaited Stage 2 Masters Copenhagen begins on July 10, 2022 and will conclude with a best-of-five Grand Final series on July 24.
The last VALORANT Masters, the VCT 2022: Stage 1 – Masters Reykjavík, was won by NA’s OpTic Gaming. The team won $200,000 after a 3-0 sweep of Brazil’s LOUD.