The playoff stage began today at the first international tournament organized by third-party organizers, the Valorant Esports World Cup 2025. Two matches were played in the quarterfinals, as a result of which we learned the names of the teams that advanced to the next stage, as well as the names of those who left the tournament.

Sentinels vs. Paper Rex
The first match was a tense battle between the favorites of their respective regions: Paper Rex from the Pacific against Sentinels from the Americas. However, the match did not live up to the teams' potential, and there was no intense competition. Paper Rex easily won 13:3 on Icebox and then won again 13:9 on Sunset , advancing to the next stage.

Fnatic vs. Karmine Corp
The second match was a European derby between Fnatic and underdogs Karmine Corp , who unexpectedly showed a high level of play at the event. But the match also turned out to be quite one-sided. Fnatic won Sunset 14:12 in the only extra round and then won Ascent 13:7, knocking their opponents out of the tournament.

As a result of the matches, Fnatic and Paper Rex advance to the semifinals, where they will face each other tomorrow in the battle for the first slot in the grand final. Karmine Corp and Sentinels , in turn, leave the event in one of the 5-8 places and earn $40,000 per team and 200 Club Points for their organizations.

The Valorant Esports World Cup 2025 is taking place from July 8 to 13 in LAN format in Riyadh. Sixteen teams from the VCT partner program are competing for a large prize pool of $1,250,000. You can follow the tournament and the results of all matches at the link.