Valorant Masters Santiago 2026 ended with an epic win for Nongshim RedForce, the South Korean team that also topped the VCT Pacific Kickoff. Let us take a look at how the initial Masters tournament of the current season went and how fan favorites fell.
This year's Valorant esports calendar has three splits in four regional leagues, two Masters, and a World Cup. Split results determine international tournament qualification; therefore, ambitious squads must achieve top rankings in their respective regions.
Valorant Masters Santiago 2026, held February 28–March 15 in Santiago, Chile, with a USD 1 million prize pool. Twelve of the world's best teams, three from each region, were invited. The group stage, played in a Swiss system, consisted of eight teams, which were the 2nd and 3rd placed teams from the first regional Kickoff split.
Swiss Stage
Gentle Mates and Paper Rex did everything right, both winning two matches and qualifying for the playoffs. NRG and G2 Esports, both from the Americas, also advanced with 2-1 records.
On the other hand, EDward Gaming, Valorant Champions 2024 winners and Masters favorites, shockingly lost both matches and fell from title contention. They were joined by XLG Esports at the bottom.
Fans expected more from Team Liquid and T1, but they both lost their decider matches and finished 1-2.
Playoffs
In the playoffs, regional league champs FURIA, All Gamers, BBL Esports, and NS RedForce competed. In the final phase, the Americas had three teams, Pacific and EMEA had two apiece, while All Gamers represented China alone.
Despite being a topper, FURIA exited the tournament first, losing both their playoff matches with an identical 1-2 record. Shockingly, Gentle Mates, the group stage leaders, were ousted early. All Gamers and BBL Esports followed, while American teams NRG and G2 Esports placed 3rd and 4th, matching their group-stage records.
Valorant Masters Santiago 2026 was contested by Pacific League teams Nongshim RedForce and Paper Rex. SEA-based Paper Rex was believed to be the frontrunner after winning three regional splits and the VALORANT Masters Toronto last year. The team still has Jason "f0rsakeN" Susanto and Khalish "d4v41" Rusyaidee, two core members who joined in 2021.
Meanwhile, NS RedForce qualified for VCT Pacific 2025 and 2026 via the Ascension competitions. Before this, their only notable win was at the VCT 2026: Pacific Kickoff.
The two teams reached the grand final in different ways despite their level difference. NS RedForce defeated Gentle Mates (2-0), G2 Esports (2-1), and NRG (2-0) to remain undefeated. After defeating FURIA (2-1), Paper Rex lost to NRG (0-2) and fell to the lower bracket, where they defeated All Gamers (2-1), G2 Esports (2-1), and NRG (3-1) to reach the final.
Grand Final
NS RedForce and Paper Rex competed in the same league, but they had never encountered each other before the Valorant Masters Santiago 2026 finals. NS RedForce chose the Corrode map for the first match, allowing their opponents to seize the lead, 4-8. The Korean team recovered after switching sides, winning the opening map (13-11).
On their adversaries' selection, Split, NS RedForce started fast and finished the map in 30 minutes, 9-3 on the defense side and 4-1 on the attack side (13-4). They ultimately won Abyss the same way, losing only three rounds to Paper Rex (13-3).
Jung "Xross" Hwan had dominant stats on the third map: ADR 245, ACS 359, and KDA 21/5/5. Xross had 60 kills and 277 ACS on all three final maps. Eventually, Lee "Dambi" Hyuk-kyu rightfully earned the tournament MVP.
When we looked at NS RedForce's individual stats, it was evident that every player played at a high level consistently. – PinoyTechSaga
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