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The 100 Thieves vs NRG match in the Mid Bracket Quarterfinals of the VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 Americas Kickoff is a do-or-die series. The loser will fall further behind in the bracket, so both teams have no room for mistakes. 100 Thieves have been showing more consistent performances recently, while NRG have had mixed results. This matchup is expected to be close, but 100 Thieves look slightly stronger on paper.
Let's dive in.
How the bookies view it: NRG favored
Bookmakers see NRG as the clear favorite in this matchup, with odds of 1.45 compared to 2.47 for 100 Thieves. This pricing reflects NRG’s stronger recent form and consistency in the Americas region, giving them a noticeable edge.
NRG form. What result can be expected from NRG
NRG is a North American VALORANT team representing the NRG organization. They compete regularly in both regional and international tournaments, online and on LAN. After a very successful 2025 season, including winning VALORANT Champions 2025, NRG enters 2026 with most of their championship roster intact. The team is led by Ethan as captain and IGL, with mada, brawk, skuba, and keiko forming a lineup that combines experience, skill, and tactical flexibility.
- NRG roster: Ethan, mada, brawk, skuba, keiko.
In 2025, NRG had strong results across several tournaments. They won VALORANT Champions 2025, beating Fnatic 3:2 in the final, and qualified first for the Esports World Cup 2025 Americas Qualifier. They also finished second at VCT 2025: Americas Stage 2 and Red Bull Home Ground 2025, and 5th–8th at the Esports World Cup 2025 main event. These results show that NRG is consistent at a high level, even if they occasionally faced setbacks.
The addition of keiko as Controller and keeping Ethan as IGL gives the team better tactical options and strong leadership. Mada and brawk provide reliable fragging, while skuba and keiko add flexibility for different roles. This makes NRG well-prepared for tough North American competition and international events.
NRG is a top team regionally, but international matches are more challenging. The roster has shown good coordination and skill, which should help them compete against the best teams worldwide.
Overall, 2025 was a breakthrough year for NRG. In 2026, the team’s main goal is to keep dominating North America and perform strongly at international tournaments.
NRG Map Pool
NRG has a clearly defined map pool in VALORANT, with some maps standing out as their strongest and others proving more challenging. Based on their performances in major 2025 tournaments, including VALORANT Champions 2025 and other events, NRG dominates Corrode and Abyss, winning nearly every match on these maps. Lotus is also a comfortable map for the team, with a win rate around 80%, while Ascent shows solid results but not full dominance. Icebox has high win statistics in specific events, though less consistent overall. Haven is considered a weaker map for NRG, and Bind is rarely won and often banned. Breeze has now entered the competitive map pool, but it is still unclear how NRG performs on it.
100 Thieves form. What result can be expected from 100 Thieves
100 Thieves is a North American VALORANT esports team representing the 100 Thieves organization and regularly competing in both regional and international VALORANT tournaments across online and LAN formats. After a challenging 2025 season, in which the team failed to qualify for major international events and struggled for consistency in regional play, 100 Thieves entered 2026 with a rebuilt roster aimed at restoring competitiveness and stability at the top North American level. The current lineup is built around Peter “Asuna” Mazuryk, Matthew “Cryocells” Panganiban, and Sean “bang” Bezerra, with Jordan “vora” Pulwer providing IGL leadership and Timothée “Timotino” Dupont adding Duelist/flex depth. This combination of experienced players and new talent is intended to improve strategic flexibility and consistency in high-pressure matches.
- 100 Thieves roster: Asuna, Cryocells, bang, Timotino, vora.
Throughout 2025, 100 Thieves had mixed results across multiple tiers of competition. The team secured notable victories in smaller tournaments, including a 2–0 win at Back to Basics 10 and 2nd place at the Esports World Cup 2025: Americas Qualifier, but also suffered defeats at major events such as VCT Americas Stage 1 and Stage 2, as well as at the Sentinels Invitational 2025, highlighting areas for growth and the need for stronger coordination under pressure. Their performance showed flashes of individual skill and potential, but overall consistency remained a major challenge.
The roster changes ahead of 2026 — most prominently the return of veterans Asuna and Cryocells, the addition of bang and Timotino, and vora taking the IGL role — were designed to address these weaknesses by strengthening leadership, tactical decision-making, and map versatility. Asuna and Cryocells provide consistent fragging power, while bang anchors strategic control with his Controller play and Timotino adds aggressive Duelist flexibility. This synergy aims to make 100 Thieves more competitive against top-tier North American teams and better prepared for international events.
While 100 Thieves has historically been a strong presence in regional competitions, maintaining consistency against elite opponents has been a challenge. Matches against teams like Sentinels, G2, and Cloud9 exposed gaps in coordination and strategy, but the roster restructuring gives the organization a renewed chance to solidify its position among North America’s best.
Overall, the 2025 season reflected a period of rebuilding and recalibration for 100 Thieves in VALORANT. With the revamped lineup, the team’s main objective for 2026 is to regain a consistent presence in international tournaments while converting regional competitiveness into deeper runs at Masters and Champions events.
At the ongoing VCT 2026: Americas Kickoff, 100 Thieves have played two matches so far. In their opening match, they defeated Leviatán with a 2:1 scoreline, but in their second series they suffered a 2:1 loss to G2 Esports.
100 Thieves Map Pool
100 Thieves demonstrate a diverse but uneven performance across their recent map pool. The team shows strong results on Abyss (83% win rate), Corrode (100%), and Pearl (75%), indicating comfort and strategic control on these maps. Bind (89%) and Ascent (67%) are also relatively solid for them, with high round win rates and effective execution in both attack and defense phases. Split (50%) and Haven (55%) are more balanced, showing moderate success but some inconsistencies in crucial rounds. On the other hand, maps like Icebox (29%) and Sunset (17%) represent clear weaknesses, where the team struggles to secure rounds and close games. Fracture (100% in only one match) shows promise but lacks a sufficient sample size to be considered a reliable pick. Maps such as Breeze (0 recent matches) remain largely untested, giving the team potential opportunities but also uncertainty.
NRG and 100 Thieves: Head‑to‑Head
NRG and 100 Thieves have faced each other multiple times in official VCT competition over the past few years, with the rivalry remaining fairly competitive. According to available match history, 100 Thieves have a slight edge overall, having won more series against NRG. In one notable encounter at the 2025 VCT Americas Stage 2, 100 Thieves defeated NRG 2–0, showcasing strong execution on maps like Bind and Sunset.
However, NRG have also had important wins, including a 2–1 victory over 100 Thieves at the 2025 VCT Americas Kickoff lower bracket, where they showed resilience by bouncing back after losing the first map.
Looking at the broader head‑to‑head picture, the teams have split many of their recent series, with 100 Thieves winning more overall but NRG proving capable of taking key wins as well. This balanced history suggests future matchups can go either way, often coming down to current form and map execution.
Predicted result of the match between NRG and 100 Thieves at VCT 2026: Americas Kickoff
Looking at the matchup, NRG enters as the stronger and more consistent team. Despite 100 Thieves having some recent victories over top opponents, NRG’s championship experience, tactical depth under Ethan’s IGL leadership, and balanced roster give them a clear edge. Their map strengths, particularly on Corrode and Abyss, combined with solid coordination and individual firepower, make them well-prepared for a do-or-die Mid Bracket Quarterfinal. While 100 Thieves can challenge on their better maps like Abyss and Corrode, NRG’s overall consistency and experience in high-pressure series make them the likely winners of this clash.
Predicition: NRG wins.
