[jwplayer C4aVz0Uy]
TSM have taken home their second Ignition Series event, defeating arch-nemesis Sentinels in the FaZe Clan Valorant Invitational and pocketing $25,000.
Valorant launched on June 2 to much excitement among esports fans, with the prospect of Riot Games launching a first-person shooter seemingly being a sure-fire recipe for success.
With the Ignition Series, Riot Games wanted to kick off the early days of Valorant esports with a bang, and have so far seen the likes of T1 and G2 Esports host invitational tournaments as a result.
The Groups are locked for this weekend's $50,000 #FaZeInvitational presented by @NissanUSA & @Verizon. Who's ready?
Hit @FaZeUpdate for all the news & scores as the games unfold! #FaZeUp pic.twitter.com/Ftbevvg4nN
— FaZe Clan (@FaZeClan) August 5, 2020
FaZe Clan Valorant Invitational recap
The FaZe Clan Valorant Invitational panned out in the early stages like most expected. The big names like Sentinels, TSM, T1, and Cloud9 made it through the group stage relatively unscathed.
However, when playoffs kicked off, that’s when the upsets started rolling. Team Envy took down Cloud9 early, knocking them down to the lower bracket. T1 were taken out in straight sets by TSM and Gen.G too.
TSM cemented themselves, very briefly, as the number one team in North America after sweeping the Sentinels 2-0 in a rematch of the PAX Arena Invitational final in the upper bracket final. The Sentinels were able to book themselves a rematch though after taking down Immortals in the lower bracket.
With a one-map advantage, many thought TSM would have the upper edge. However, the Sentinels came out firing on Haven, taking down TSM 13-8. From there, the two god squads ended up trading maps, with TSM taking Split and Sentinels taking Ascent to force a map five.
[#VALORANT | Ignition Series]
We are going to Map 5! @Sentinels bring it back on Ascent to force a final-map decider against @TSM in the FaZe Invitational!
Streams, results & placements so far: https://t.co/E7en2Hyu8K pic.twitter.com/keYfW7rHYc
— Valorant News (@ValorINTEL) August 10, 2020
Bind was the battleground for the championship decider, and it was the nail biter everyone was hoping for. Taylor ‘drone’ Johnson kept TSM in the game despite a poor start, although Jay ‘sinatraa’ Won and Hunter ‘SicK’ Mims had other ideas.
Eventually, TSM came out on top with an incredible comeback on their attack half, taking out Bind in overtime 14-12, in what is probably the best series in Valorant’s short history so far.
[#VALORANT | Ignition Series]
What. A. Comeback. @TSM are your FaZe Clan Invitational champions, taking down arch-nemesis @Sentinels!
Full results, placements & recap: https://t.co/E7en2Hyu8K pic.twitter.com/FOvPHnlfha
— Valorant News (@ValorINTEL) August 10, 2020
Killjoy not available for use
Although FaZe initially decided they would be making Killjoy available for this tournament, they had to change their mind due to Riot insisting the Agent isn’t ready for competitive play just yet.
In a tweet, they stated it’s on them and thanked the org for putting the competitive experience first. This leaves us wondering when will we get to see the Genius of Germany make her competitive debut.
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This one's on us.
Thanks for the understanding, and for putting the competitive experience first. Looking forward to watching a great tournament! https://t.co/J4maVOMHG3
— VALORANT (@VALORANT) August 6, 2020
When was the FaZe Clan Valorant Invitational?
The FaZe Clan Valorant Invitational kicked off on August 6, and saw teams compete right through to August 9. Group stage matches started on August 6, while playoffs set off on August 7.
Which teams played?
FaZe, who recently announced the addition of Andrej ‘babybay’ Francisty to their Valorant roster, welcomed in some of the biggest names in esports to take part in their tournament.
As well as their fresh roster, they faced off against the likes of 100 Thieves, T1, Cloud9, TSM, and more. Here are the 16 teams that competed in their respective groups:
Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D |
Sentinels | TSM | T1 | FaZe Clan |
Lemonade Stand | Bloom | Mixup | China Nguyen |
Gen.G Esports | Cloud9 | Team Envy | Immortals |
Built By Gamers | Renegades | Complexity | 100 Thieves |
FaZe Clan Valorant Invitational: Results & schedule
Group Stage
Below are the standings for each group, filtered by position.
Group A
Position | Team | Match record (map count) |
1 | Sentinels (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost: 0 (4/0). |
2 | Gen.G Esports (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost: 1 (5/3). |
3 | Lemonade Stand | Won: 1, Lost: 2 (3/4). |
4 | Built by Gamers | Won: 0, Lost: 2 (0/4). |
Group B
Position | Team | Match record (map count) |
1 | Cloud9 (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost: 0 (4/1). |
2 | TSM (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost: 1 (5/3). |
3 | Renegades | Won: 1, Lost: 2 (2/4). |
4 | Bloom | Won: 0, Lost: 2 (1/4). |
Group C
Position | Team | Match record (map count) |
1 | T1 (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost: 0 (4/0). |
2 | Team Envy (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost: 1 (4/4). |
3 | Complexity | Won 1, Lost: 2 (4/4). |
4 | Mixup | Won: 0, Lost: 2 (0/4). |
Group D
Position | Team | Match record (map count) |
1 | Immortals (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost: 0 (4/0). |
2 | FaZe Clan (Qualified) | Won: 2, Lost 1 (4/4). |
3 | China Nguyen | Won: 1, Lost: 2 (3/4). |
4 | 100 Thieves | Won: 0, Lost: 2 (1/4). |
Playoffs
Below is the schedule and results for the double-elimination Playoff bracket.
Friday, August 7
Round (BO3) | Match | PST | EST | BST | CEST |
Upper Bracket Quarterfinals | Sentinels 2-0 FaZe Clan | 2:00 PM | 5:00 PM | 10:00 PM | 11:00 PM |
Cloud9 1-2 Team Envy | 2:00 PM | 5:00 PM | 10:00 PM | 11:00 PM | |
T1 1-2 TSM | 4:30 PM | 7:30 PM | 12:30 AM | 1:30 AM | |
Immortals 2-1 Gen.G Esports | 4:30 PM | 7:30 PM | 12:30 AM | 1:30 AM | |
Lower Bracket Round 1 | FaZe Clan 1-2 Cloud9 | 6:30 PM | 9:30 PM | 2:30 AM | 3:30 AM |
T1 0-2 Gen.G Esports | 6:30 PM | 9:30 PM | 2:30 AM | 3:30 AM |
Saturday, August 8
Round (BO3) | Match | PST | EST | BST | CEST |
Upper Bracket Semifinals | Sentinels 2-1 Team Envy | 2:00 PM | 5:00 PM | 10:00 PM | 11:00 PM |
TSM 2-0 Immortals | 2:00 PM | 5:00 PM | 10:00 PM | 11:00 PM | |
Lower Bracket Round 2 | Immortals 2-1 Cloud9 | 4:30 PM | 7:30 PM | 12:30 AM | 1:30 AM |
Team Envy 0-2 Gen.G Esports | 6:30 PM | 9:30 PM | 2:30 AM | 3:30 AM | |
Upper Bracket Final | Sentinels 0-2 TSM | 4:30 PM | 7:30 PM | 12:30 AM | 1:30 AM |
Lower Bracket Round 3 | Immortals 2-0 Gen.G Esports | 9:00 PM | 12:00 AM | 5:00 AM | 6:00 AM |
Sunday, August 9
Round | Match | PST | EST | BST | CEST |
Lower Bracket Final (BO3) | Sentinels 2 vs 0 Immortals | 2:00 PM | 5:00 PM | 10:00 PM | 11:00 PM |
Grand Final (BO5) | TSM 3 – 2 Sentinels | 4:30 PM | 7:30 PM | 12:30 AM | 1:30 AM |
FaZe Clan Valorant Invitational: Final placements
Below are the final placements of the FaZe Clan Invitational, with the prize money being share among the top four teams.
Final Placement | Team Name | Prize money (USD) |
1st | TSM | $25,000 |
2nd | Sentinels | $15,000 |
3rd | Immortals | $7,500 |
4th | Gen.G Esports | $2,500 |
5th – 6th | Team Envy | – |
Cloud9 | – | |
7th – 8th | FaZe Clan | – |
T1 | – | |
9th – 12th | Complexity | – |
China Nguyen | – | |
Lemonade Stand | – | |
Renegades | – | |
13th – 16th | 100 Thieves | – |
Mixup | – | |
Bloom | – | |
Built By Gamers | – |