Shopify confirms top three after defeating Xipto Esports 2-0

After defeating Xipto Esports Xipto Esports Asia-Pacific Rank #2 Tara Ryona Shannen Tan shirazi Kelly Jaudian Alexy Alexy Francisco enerii Odella Abraham Kamiyu Camille Enriquez 2-0, the defending champion, Shopify Rebellion Shopify Rebellion North America Rank #1 meL Melanie Capone alexis Alexis Guarrasi Noia Nicole Tierce florescent Ava Eugene sarahcat Sarah Simpson , has made the top three in the 2024 Game Changers Championship. They will next play against G2 Gozen G2 Gozen Europe Unranked rezq Eda Naz Akçocuk amy Amy Lai Vania Aleyna Keskin Petra Petra Stoker mimi Michaela Lintrup in the upper bracket final for a spot in the grand final, a repeat of 2023 in which Shopify came out on top. Xipto remains in the tournament, and will next play against KRÜ BLAZE KRÜ BLAZE Latin America South Unranked dods Caue Fernandes conir Constanza Reyes romily Romina Alvarez micaela Micaela Ferreyra biazik Beatriz Begnossi in the lower bracket.

Despite both teams reaching the top four in GCC 2023 (with the Xipto core representing Team SMG at the time), this series is the first time the teams have met. As higher seeded teams, the teams only have one Berlin game under their belt, but still had expectations regarding the matchup.

“I'm most excited to play against Alexy,” alexis commented on her opponents ahead of the matchup. On the Xipto side, enerii felt recovered after she fell ill upon her arrival at Berlin. “I feel good today. I think I'm at 100% today,” she said before the series.

Xipto opted for a double-Duelist, Sentinel-less comp in their map pick. The South East Asian lineup took the pistol and anti-eco round, but Shopify caused enough damage to take the next three rounds. enerii 's Neon led her team to back-to-back retake wins with three separate triple kills, leading to a timeout from the opposing coach, effys . The defending champions recovered, but another 3K from enerii kept the score close, sending the map into halftime with a 6-6.

The second pistol came down to the wire, a 1v1 between Kamiyu and meL that went Xipto's way. Their gun advantage was more than enough to take the anti-eco. florescent found a 4K, which led to a pause from Xipto. alexis and Noia held against Xipto's attempts the next two rounds, taking the lead for their team with a 9-8. Another two points for Shopify forced Xipto to request a timeout with coach Colbat , but it was not enough to stop florescent's Operator collateral or counter Noia's A stronghold, which helped end the map 13-8.

“They go in as a tight unit, it's what I expected,” SR coach effys said after Pearl.

Xipto took the opening pistol round on Sunset. Their offense was able to confirm the anti-eco, but Shopify won the next three rounds to take the lead and force out Xipto's timeout. The pause helped the South East Asian squad equalize, only for Shopify to break the tie after a set play and anti-eco win. Xipto recovered, with a clutch from Tara setting them up to win the last four rounds of the half.

Now on defense, Xipto won their fourth pistol round of the series. florescent helped deny the anti-eco, and Shopify continued taking rounds, equalizing at 8-8 and taking the lead a round later. Xipto closed the gap the following round after a shirazi clutch, setting off a back-and-forth in which both teams won one round each and took the following anti-eco. Shopify returned to B site for their final rounds, setting up a B main post-plant with their utility. Alexy did her best to deny Shopify the series, but their oppressive tactic and slight economic advantage was just enough to end the map 13-11 in the North American squad's favor and closing the series 2-0.

The win sets Shopify up for a repeat of the 2023 upper final, in which Shopify Rebellion defeated G2 Gozen on their way to the trophy. The defending champions' core duo, alexis and meL, has now reached the top four at GCC for a third year in a row, having finished in fourth in 2022 and winning the 2023 version of the event. Similarly, Shopify Rebellion as an organization has been in the top three in all previous events, making the 2022 grand final with a different roster.

Xipto Esports, on the other hand, will need to defeat KRÜ BLAZE in order to match their record as a core, having reached the top four in the Game Changers 2023 Championship as Team SMG.