VCT Masters Santiago 2026 Playoffs Preview: Matchups & Predictions
The top eight teams at VCT Masters Santiago 2026 are locked in. Four teams survived an intense Swiss Stage and will now be greeted by the top seeds from each region in the playoffs. If you missed out on the action so far, here’s everything you need to know to get up to speed heading into the VCT Masters Santiago playoffs.
VCT Masters Santiago 2026 Playoff Bracket
VCT Masters Santiago 2026 is down to eight. The four regional first seeds are yet to show their cards on the international stage and had the honor of selecting their opponents for the first round of the playoffs.
On the other hand, the four survivors of the Swiss Stage – Gentle Mates, Paper Rex, G2 Esports, and NRG, had to fight their way through a brutal set of matches to keep their tournament campaigns going.
Asia Pacific’s first seed – Nongshim RedForce – were lucky enough to draw the first pick and chose Gentle Mates as their opponents. This was followed by the sole Chinese team remaining – All Gamers – going for a bold pick and selecting G2 Esports as their opponent. These two matchups will kick off the first day of the playoffs.
With Paper Rex and NRG as the remaining choices, FURIA decided to take on the Southeast Asian squad, leaving BBL versus NRG as the final first-round matchup.
The full playoff bracket and first-round matchups can be seen below:
First Round Matchups (Image via Valorant Esports)
Top Contenders Heading into the Playoffs
In our opinion, these three teams look strongest heading into the playoffs and are the ones with the best chance of lifting the trophy.
Paper Rex: Southeast Asia’s Dominant Force
With a dominant Swiss Stage performance, taking out two extremely potent teams heading into the event, Paper Rex look like they are in top shape.
Their experienced, title-winning squad is firing on all cylinders, and it looks like the Kings of Pacific are poised to make a deep run. In fact, they might even be the favorites to lift the trophy here in Santiago.
NRG: Looking to Defend Their Title
Hopes weren’t too high coming into Santiago for the reigning champs, but a strong Swiss Stage performance has relit the fire, as NRG look to defend what’s theirs. Their newest recruit, Keiko, has been playing some phenomenal Valorant lately and is the second-highest rated player at the event, averaging 1.30.
Keiko has been playing out of his mind (Image via Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games)
If Ethan can continue making great calls, we could see him lift his third international trophy here in Chile.
Gentle Mates: Inexperienced Squad Hungry to Prove Themselves
If you’re looking for an underdog story, Gentle Mates is the team you want to cheer for. Four out of five players on this team were competing in Tier 2 just last year, and here they are, now in the top eight.
The squad has done an excellent job setting up their star duelist, marteen, for success. After breaking the international VCT kill record in EMEA, marteen is boasting a 1.48 rating at this event – the highest-rated player by a mile.
Swiss Stage Survivors Hold the Upper Hand in the Playoffs
We cannot overestimate the first seeds at this tournament – in fact, we believe that the Swiss Stage survivors are the stronger teams heading into the playoffs. Even the Valorant betting odds agree, as all four Swiss survivors are favored in their respective first-round matchups.
Swiss Stage teams look strong in Santiago (Image via Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games)
It was a strange Kickoff in every region, with underdogs taking the first seed in all of them, so this setup makes sense. We even think entering the event as a second or third seed is an advantage, as having the chance to warm up and carry momentum from the Swiss Stage can do wonders for teams looking to get the early jitters out of the way and start ramping up.
Our VCT Masters Santiago 2026 First Round Predictions
The first round of matches already promises fireworks, as we’ll finally get to see what the first seeds are made of. Here are our predictions for the first round matchups:
- Nongshim RedForce 1-2 Gentle M8s
- All Gamers 0-2 G2 Esports
- FURIA 0-2 Paper Rex
- BBL 1-2 NRG
We believe that the Swiss Stage teams will win all of their matchups. Out of all the first seeds, Nongshim RedForce has the highest chance of taking their opening series. If you’re looking for a new site to bet Valorant Masters markets read our GG.Bet review.
Owen lives for competition, spending most of his gaming hours on Dota 2, CS2, and Valorant. A regular on the SEA Dota 2 leaderboards, he combines his first-hand experience with a deep passion for esports journalism, following the professional scenes of all three esports betting titles religiously. When he’s not writing, he’s most probably betting on esports and watching the latest events.
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