LOUD’s early exit from VCT Masters Tokyo, merely a pair months away from VALORANT Champions 2023 and simply after they claimed the VCT Americas trophy, maybe isn’t as beautiful when you think about that each crew that has completed second at a world occasion has skilled a significant setback quickly after.
On the one hand, LOUD had an unlucky draw, having to play not one however two groups destined to make magical runs at Masters Tokyo, the rising Chinese language roster of EDward Gaming and the shockingly unstoppable Evil Geniuses. On the opposite, it’s equally surprising to see the LOUD roster that regarded so dominant in VCT LOCK//IN and the Americas season fall flat in Tokyo, losing two series without picking up a single map.
At VCT LOCK//IN, LOUD completed in second place, falling simply wanting pulling off the yet-to-be-done full reverse sweep of a five-map collection in opposition to Fnatic within the grand finals. However the lurking second place curse has waited for a world occasion to strike LOUD but once more.
There have been seven worldwide VALORANT tournaments as a part of the VCT ecosystem, and all seven second-place groups have been cursed quickly after. Fnatic had been the primary, ending second at Masters Reykjavík 2021, however failing to even qualify for the following event in Masters Berlin.
Related outcomes have occurred to Envy, Paper Rex, and even LOUD themselves. It’s not simply in-game outcomes both: Gambit got here second at Champions 2021, however the Russian invasion of Ukraine pressured the gamers to play beneath a impartial banner, and the roster ultimately break up. Regardless of ending second at Champions 2022, OpTic didn’t purchase partnership standing for the VCT 2023 season.
If there’s any comfort for LOUD, it’s that a few the groups, together with themselves, have rallied instantly after their cursed outcome. The Workforce Envy roster got here second at Masters Berlin, then missed playoffs at Champions 2021, however got here again beneath the OpTic banner on the very subsequent occasion in Masters Reykjavik 2022 and received. It was in Iceland the place LOUD completed second, solely to overlook playoffs at Copenhagen, however they themselves rallied at Champions 2022 to win the world championship.
The second-place curse remains to be going sturdy, so for whoever makes the grand finals this time, not shedding might very nicely be extra essential than profitable.
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