EG vs. LOUD Champions LA 2023: Evil Geniuses book their place in the Champions LA Grand Final

It's EG vs. LOUD in the lower bracket final here at Champions LA. Both teams find themselves one win away from securing their spot in the grand final match. So make sure you keep an eye on this page as this is a match you will not want to miss!

It's an all-Americas League affair in the Champions LA lower bracket final as LOUD face off against Evil Geniuses. The last time these two sides faced off against each other was back in Masters Tokyo, with the North American side coming out on top. But with a place in the Champions grand final on the line, and the fact that both sides are in tremendous form, this best-of-five series promises to be a thrilling contest.

EG tasted defeat for the first time in this tournament after losing to Paper Rex 2 - 1 in the upper bracket final. Despite being on the losing end, the American team continued to impress in that game. Especially C0M, who finished the match with an impressive 64 kills and 47 deaths. And with Fnatic now out of the tournament, EG's Demon1 now holds the highest average K/D at Champions LA with an impressive 1.39. EG will be hopping that these two can continue to produce moments of magic, as they will need some in order to overcome this high-flying LOUD team.

The Brazilians were victorious in their lower bracket semi-final matchup 2 - 1 as they eliminated Fnatic from the competition. Though LOUD have already completed their revenge arc over their European rivals, they now have the chance to become the first team to reach back-to-back Champions grand finals. But to accomplish this task they are going to need to their star man Aspas to kick it in to high gear. Because while the duelist has been putting up some solid numbers for his side thus far, we have yet to see him truly be the menace many know him to be. With his teammates Cauanzhin and Less being thrust into the limelight in LA.

The match begins with a trip to EG's first pick of Ascent. No initial surprises in the agent selection as both teams go with a standard double-initiator composition.

LOUD get off to a good start with a flawless pistol round on their defense. Saadhak gets a 3k to give LOUD their anti-eco, only for Demon1 to respond with a multi-kill of his own to take an anti-bonus. A moment which allows EG to take the lead at 3 - 2 as they set the tempo early in this game. LOUD are able to tie things up coming out of a timeout. But C0M and Demon1 arrive on the scene with some early game heroics to keep EG in the lead at 5 - 3. LOUD manage to tie things up again, but a blunder from the Brazilians grants EG a Thrifty win. Providing the American side with the means of taking a 7 - 5 lead into the second half.

Boostio nets a 3k to give EG the second pistol round and maintain their advantage on Ascent. They also convert on their anti-eco before losing out on their bonus. And they manage to hit the ten point mark thanks to a crucial 1v1 from Ethan. LOUD are able to get a couple more rounds on the board, but they continue to falter in the face of EG's defensive play-calling.

The Brazilians eclipse the double-digit mark and look like they were going to tie up the map. Only for Ethan to come up with an incredible play in round 22 which gets EG onto map point. LOUD are able to push the map into overtime. But that proves to be all they had left in the tank as EG make quick work of LOUD to close out Ascent 14 - 12 and give themselves a 1 - 0 lead in the series.

After a hard-fought win on Ascent, Evil Geniuses head over to LOUD's pick of Lotus for the second map of this series. Both teams opt to go with double-controller compositions but each with a unique twist. With LOUD putting Cauanzin on Fade and tuyZ on Omen. Whereas Demon1 swaps over to Astra alongside Ethan's Skye.

EG take the opening pistol round and their anti-eco with relative ease to kick off their attack half. LOUD manage to stabilize early to tie things up at 2 - 2. But an early thrifty and a 4k from Jawgemo in Round 6 puts EG back in control of the map. EG's lead only continues to grow as LOUD struggles to find any success from their post-plant setups. Add to that EG's much more aggressive tempo, compared to Ascent, and it allows the Americans to run away with the first half 10 - 2. And LOUD seemingly with absolutely everything to do in the second half.

EG pick up the second pistol round of the game as they draw ever closer to another map win. LOUD go for a force buy which barely pays off to give the Brazilians their third round of the game. They manage to get another round, and look as though they might be able to make things a bit more respectable. But a huge blunder from LOUD puts them onto map point. And they manage to rub further salt into their opponent's wounds with a Thrifty to close out Lotus 13 - 4. Allowing them to extend their lead in the series to 2 - 0 and plunge LOUD into a deep, deep hole.

LOUD head over to EG's second map pick of Pearl as they attempt to claw their way back into the series. And to do that, the Brazilians decide to bring back their Harbor and Viper double-controller composition. On the other side we see EG opt to go with the same double-duelist composition they used against Paper Rex with Ethan bringing his Yoru out to play.

LOUD take the opening pistol round of the half and also manage to convert on their anti-eco despite a last ditch defuse attempt from Jawgemo. They manage to chain together a few more rounds as they stretch their lead to 5 - 0. EG finally get themselves onto the board after putting a stop to LOUD's six round win-streak. But the Brazilians' lead just continues to grow in the face of an ace from Boostio and another insane clutch from C0M. And their are rewarded for their efforts with a 9 - 3 lead to take into the second half.

EG come up with the second pistol round and an anti-eco to give themselves a way back into the game. They manage to convert on their bonus thanks to yet another clutch play from C0M. But LOUD come up with a Thrifty round to put themselves onto double-digits at 10 - 6. The Americans continue to chip away out LOUD's lead as C0M and Jawgemo prove to be a nuisance for them to deal with. But LOUD steel themselves in the face of danger to put themselves onto map point. And with one final flick of the wrist from Aspas, LOUD manage to put Pearl away with a 13 - 8 win. Granting the Brazilians with the a much needed lifeline in the series.

Following on from their strong performance on Pearl, LOUD bring us over to Split for the fourth map of this series. They opt to go with a double-initiator setup in the form of Breach and Skye. Meanwhile, Evil Geniuses go for a little reshuffle with their double-controller composition as Demon1 picks up Astra again to allow Boostio to move back onto Chamber.

LOUD take the opening pistol round but falter on their anti-eco as C0M prevents Aspas from picking up an ace with a pivotal 1v1 duel. But the Brazilian comes up with another 4k as he reaches 10 kills after only three rounds of play. Their lead increases to 5 - 1 on the map with Aspas' killcount continuing to rise along with it. EG get their second round on the board but they continue to crumble in the face of the overwhelming pressure from LOUD's attack. A 2k from Ethan nets EG their third round, but LOUD remain fully in the drivers seat with a 9 - 3 lead after the first half of play. With Aspas closing out the first half with 23 kills and using three ultimates.

LOUD take the second pistol round which gets them to the ten point mark on Split. EG respond with an eco-round and a bonus as they begin to show signs of life in this game. The Brazilians reach map point at 12 - 5 in the face of two clutch attempts from Demon1. The Americans come out swinging as they mount a desperate assault. But in the end they just could not keep LOUD penned back for long. And with one final clutch, this time from tuyZ, LOUD are able to take Split 13 - 8, tying up the series 2 - 2 and sending this match to the fifth and final map.

With the series all tied up at 2 - 2 we now head to Bind for the deciding map of this best-of-five thriller. Evil Geniuses stick with a double-controller composition with Demon1 moving onto the Chamber role and Boostio taking Brimstone. Whereas LOUD decide to bust out their triple-controller composition.

EG barely manage to take the opening pistol round of the map. But it provides the American side with an ample staging ground as they take three more rounds in a row as they look to regain their confidence from earlier in the series. LOUD finally get themselves on the board as they look to ramp up the tempo on their defensive half. And though they are able to reduce the deficit, EG's gradual build-up play on their attack enables them to take a 7 - 5 lead into halftime.

A 3k from Less nets LOUD the second pistol round as they draw close to tying up the series. But a post-plant blunder provides EG with a crucial Thrifty win. And it once again gives the American team full control of the map as they quickly reach the double-digit mark. LOUD manage to get a couple more rounds on the board, but they continue to struggle against EG's tremendous defensive setups. The Americans reach match point off of another light-buy situation with LOUD looking truly down in the dumps.

It took an enormous amount of effort for LOUD to be able to tie up this series. But when the chips were down, it was Evil Geniuses who rose to the occasion when it really mattered. And with one last clutch play, this time from Ethan, EG manage to take Bind 13 - 8, the series 3 - 2 and book their place in the Champions 2023 Grand Final.

We are at the business end of the 2023 VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) season. Sixteen of the best VALORANT teams from around the world have come together in the city of Los Angeles as they fight for the right to be called Champions. Fans who wish to watch the EG vs LOUD lower bracket final match may do so by heading to the VALORANT Twitch and YouTube channels.

You can also tune in via the embedded stream link down below if you don't wish to click off of this page.

Head on over to our VCT 2023 hub for all of the latest news from across the tournament.