EMEA teams at VCT LOCK//IN set sights on the trophy for EU (Part 1)

VCT 2023 kicks off with a massive event to commemorate the beginning of a new VALORANT competitive season. A season that sees the beginning of a new era for VALORANT esports with the VCT International Leagues featuring partnered organizations. That event is the VCT LOCK//IN taking place in Brazil. 30 partnered teams and 2 teams from China will battle for glory in a single-elimination bracket with only one team coming out on top as the survivor and winner. Make sure to check out our VCT 2023 Hub for all information you need on the upcoming VCT LOCK//IN event in Brazil.

One of the three regions of the VCT 2023 International Leagues is EMEA. This article showcases five of the ten teams at LOCK//IN with their recent roster changes and standout player based on their performance over the 2022 calendar year.

Fnatic turn up the heat with Leo and Chronicle

The beginning of the VCT 2023 season sees Fnatic field a changed roster once again. Jake "Boaster" Howlett remains as the only player from the SUMN FC team that Fnatic picked up by the end of 2020.

Joining the team are Leo "Leo" Jannesson and Timofey "Chronicle" Khromov from Guild Esports and M3C respectively. Additionally, Fnatic have also picked up Maks “kamyk”Rychlewski as the team’s sixth man at the beginning of January. These newcomers will be joining Nikita "Derke" Sirmitev and Emir "Alfajer" Ali Beder, the two stars of the team that have retained their place coming into VCT 2023.

By the looks of it on paper, Fnatic boast (no pun intended) a formidable team heading into the VCT 2023 season. Leo proved himself time and time again at Guild, and he had a phenomenal season in 2022. His Rating of 1.25 is the highest on our list of most outstanding players of the year. This is supplemented by a K/D of 1.39 and an Average Combat Score of 241. It’s safe to say that Fnatic have picked up one of the best talents in the region.

Chronicle has less to show for from the 2022 VALORANT season. This is mostly due to the former Gambit Esports’ team crumbling due to the war in Ukraine. The team decided to continue competing as M3 Champions. Despite M3C staying competitive, the team’s lack of funding eventually led to individual members departing the organization-less team. Still, Chronicle was part of the immensely talented Gambit team that triumphed at VCT 2021: Masters Berlin and took the runner-up spot at VALORANT Champions 2021. The experience and talent he brings to the Fnatic camp is nothing to scoff at.

Fnatic will be facing Sentinels on February 24 at VCT LOCK//IN Brazil.

Team Liquid lose Benrlitom duo, sign 3 stars to compensate

Much like many teams participating in the VCT 2023 International Leagues, Team Liquid are entering the 2023 season with new firepower. The team has only retained Dom "soulcas" Sulcas and Elias "Jamppi" Olkkonen from the previous year.

Liquid will see a brand-new look in 2023. The team’s Benrlitom brothers—ScreaM and Nivera—have departed to Karmine Corp. Instead, Liquid have brought on board three new signings that, at the very least, match the calibre of the team’s former duo. Gambit’s and M3C’s Igor "Redgar" Vlasov and Ayaz "nAts" Akhmetshin paired with Guild’s former soldier Saif "Sayf" Jibraeel will be carrying Liquid’s firm banner to battle this VCT International Leagues season and at the Brazil LOCK//IN event.

Liquid, much like Fnatic, were always the sort of team that got far at VCT events but have an empty cabinet when it comes to international trophies. 2022 saw Liquid get far at VALORANT Champions and Stage 1 Masters – Reykjavik (7th-8th) but not far enough to make it an achievement worth bringing up in conversation.

Liquid will be looking to change that in 2023. One man may be able to aid in that change and that man is Sayf. The Swedish-born turned up the heat last year, racking up a Rating of 1.18, a K/D ratio of 1.35, and an ACS of 240. He also had the highest Average Kills per Round of anyone highlighted at 0.85.

Liquid has built a mighty lineup for the VCT 2023 season. Without ScreaM, the team sports a new, perhaps more refined identity to VCT LOCK//IN and beyond.

Team Liquid will face Team Secret on February 22 in their opening match in the Brazil LOCK//IN event.

Karmine Corp enter the big leagues with ScreaM and Nivera

Speaking of Adil "ScreaM" Benrlitom. Alongside his brother Nabil "Nivera" Benrlitom, the duo has found a new home for the VCT 2023 season. French organization Karmine Corp has landed itself a spot in the VCT International Leagues, despite having little to show for in terms of their current VALORANT achievements due to the team being one of the youngest teams. The organization previously fielded a VRL France: Revolution roster yet failed to achieve great heights with it.

The fresh Karmine Corp team has retained Ryad "Shin" Ensaad and Alexis "Newzera" Humbert from its previous lineup. The Benrlitom brothers have come in from Liquid as mentioned, and rounding out the team is Alexandre "xms" Forté, who previously had a brief stint at MAD Lions. All the players play their part in making up an all French-Belgian mix that will be representing the famed French organization. An organization that is yet to become a storied one in VALORANT.

The standout player for Karmine Corp is of course ScreaM. However, 2022 was a rather lackluster year for the Belgian, at least as far as individual statistics are concerned. Nevertheless, ScreaM attained a Rating of 1.10, K/D of 1.13, and an ACS of 236. By no means weak statistics. And yet, we’ve come to expect great things from the potent “headshot machine.”

Karmine Corp will be facing FunPlus Phoenix on February 14 in their opening match at VCT LOCK//IN.

Natus Vincere look scary with FPX core and cNed

Natus Vincere have acquired an unimaginably strong roster for the VCT 2023 season. Essentially, the Ukrainian organization has signed four players from the former FunPlus Phoenix team and slapped on a VALORANT Champions 2021 winner in the form of Mehmet Yağız "cNed" İpek. ardiis is the sole former FPX player that is not joining NAVI as he has joined NRG Esports in the VCT Americas League.

NAVI is no stranger to VALORANT, formerly predominantly fielding a mix of Russian and Belarusian players from June of 2021. The team showed initial sparks of promise at more local Eastern European events but fell short on EMEA's VCT stage.

When NAVI managed to get their slot in the VCT International League, the organization wasted no time in picking up the quatro from FPX: Kirill "ANGE1" Karasiow, Andrey "Shao" Kiprsky, Pontus "Zyppan" Eek, and Dmitry "SUYGETSU" Ilyushin. With ardiis emigrating, cNed came in to fill his shoes. Following a rather rocky 2022 season at Acend, cNed may have finally found a home that will let him shine just as bright as he did in the 2021 VALORANT season.

We are putting Shao on the pedestal as NAVI’s best player going into LOCK//IN based on his performance in 2022. His immense flexibility to play any Agent and ability to perform despite that has been outstanding. His stats also speak for themselves by attaining a Rating of 1.11, K/D of 1.2 and ACS of 208. If there’s anyone out there that can flex into any role and still put up numbers, it’s a hard ask not to mention Shao.

Natus Vincere will go up against KRÜ Esports in their opener at VCT LOCK//IN.

Team Vitality demands respect with BONECOLD at the helm

Runners-up of 2022’s VALORANT Regional Leagues, Team Vitality, have gone through a noticeable roster shakeup upon netting themselves a slot in the VCT 2023 International Leagues. The team’s in-game leader, Santeri "BONECOLD" Sassi, alongside Vitality’s longest-standing member, Jokūbas "ceNder" Labutis, have retained ther spots on the team’s roster.

To fill the remaining vacancies, Vitality signed a promising trio of Michał "MOLSI" Łącki, Tomas "Destrian" Linikas, and Karel "Twisten" Ašenbrener on November 11, 2022. The signing turned Vitality into an all-Eastern European medley, with BONECOLD being the exception, leading the team as the sole Scandinavian member.

When comparing to the other teams in this piece, Vitality may look somewhat lackluster. BONECOLD is the only team member that has a VCT trophy to show for. The remaining players have competed in last year’s VRL or VCT EMEA but to no notable extent. And yet, Vitality have had a very solid showing at G-Loot VALORANT Clash and Red Bull Home Ground #3. At both events Vitality placed 3rd-4th. Still, the team’s true test will be at LOCK//IN and later at the VCT EMEA International League as competition is bound to reach new heights when Masters and Champions events are on the line.

The team’s standout player based on their play from 2022 is the Polish-born MOLSI. Having played for LDN UTD and then OG LDN UTD, MOLSI attained a Rating of 1.18, K/D of 1.24, and an ACS of 236.

Team Vitality’s opening match at VCT LOCK//IN Brazil will be against Global Esports on February 23.

Best performers from each team

The image below shows the best performers from each team based on their performance over the course of the 2022 calendar year. To be taken into account, each player had to play a minimum of 1500 rounds in official matches during the year.