Esports
T1 swept the Red Bull Home Ground 2024 final in a decisive show of strength, but there were plenty of standout moments from other teams as well. Here are our picks.
Some of the biggest talents in VALORANT esports met in Berlin this weekend for a thrilling clash to determine the post-season champions at Red Bull Home Ground 2024, held in the historic Arena Berlin. It was a thrilling contest between the runners-up of the VALORANT competitive season, featuring the mighty T1, Cloud9, G2 Esports, FUT Esports, Team Heretics, Fnatic, FOKUS and Karmine Corp.
T1 won the day with a decisive performance that defeated North America’s Cloud9 in the grand final. Although the South Korean team took home the trophy, every team had their moment to shine throughout the single-elimination finals. These were the standout moments that defined the event.
Watch the Grand Final in full:
01
FUT clinch top four
Turkish organisation FUT Esports had plenty of clutch moments throughout their Red Bull Home Ground campaign. Still, opponents and viewers were forced to sit up and pay attention when they made a comeback on the final day of Red Bull Home Ground.
After falling to the lower tier of the tournament following a defeat to T1 Esports, the team made it to the playoffs. FUT had disappointed throughout the 2024 season but showed they still had some fight left in them in a spectacular defeat over French org Karmine Corp. qRaxs was the standout player in this match, standing above his peers with a formidable KDA.
02
Xeus shines in the semis
When it comes to rising talent, Doğan ‘Xeus’ Gözgen made a huge impression in Red Bull Home Ground 2024. FUT collected multiple trophies throughout the 2024 season but failed to make an impression at majors. At Home Ground, the squad seemed determined to take home a trophy, fighting fire with fire when they met G2 Esports in the semi-finals.
In this pivotal match, the 20-year-old Xeus dominated the scoreboard, frequently displaying impeccable positioning and formidable fragging. His perceptive map control impressed, but it was his lethality that made him the MVP of this match. As G2 closed in, he executed an ace that stunned the audience in round 23, taking down Nathan ‘leaf’ Orf, Jonah ‘JonahP’ Pulice and Trent ‘trent’ Cairns in one fell swoop to win the round.
03
Cloud9’s little piece of Haven
Cloud9 certainly displayed ascendant play in the early stages of the tournament, demonstrating mastery on every map, in particular, Haven. In the group stage, the squad went undefeated, with Erick ‘Xeppa’ Bach emerging as the team’s most lethal player.
Working as a cohesive unit, the team frequently found ways to deny space to their opponents, forcing them into fights where the North Americans had a distinct advantage. The team were similarly dominant in the grand finals, sailing through the competition without dropping a single match. Until they met T1…
04
T1’s grand final clutch
After a dominant undefeated performance on the final day of Red Bull Home Ground, the South Korean competitors faced their final challenge in the form of G2 when they reached the final round. A hard-fought best-of-five saw Cloud9 gain an early lead with superior synergy. G2’s unparalleled positioning made them a tougher opponent than T1 had faced thus far, but it wasn’t long before they bounced back.
T1 struck back in round 2. Ko ‘Sylvan’ Young-sub and Kim ‘Stax’ Gu-taek emerged as standout players, delivering standout plays despite slogging through seven matches just that day. In VALORANT esports, there’s no rest for the wicked, and T1 displayed some wicked talent here.
The climactic moment came on the final map - Haven, where T1 disrupted G2’s previously unchallenged dominance of the monastery-based map. As the rounds played out it became clear that T1 were in a class of their own. Stax delivered some high-impact clutch plays in crucial rounds, notably in the penultimate round, where he hit a triple kill to put T1 in an insurmountable lead. All that was left was for the combined powers of Yu ‘BuZz’ Byung-chul, Sylvan, Ham ‘Izu’ Woo-Joo and Stax to wipe out C9’s last stand to take the trophy.
In-game leader Stax reaffirmed the team’s work ethic and dedication to excellence in his post-match interview stating: “Our mindset is that we need to improve.”
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