Xi Lai Gaming Xi Lai Gaming China Unranked Viva Lifan Ran (冉立凡) Rarga Arthur Churyumov happywei Deng Minwei (邓闵维) coconut Colin Patrick Chung (钟弘祖) YOU Yip Man Ho has reached the top six at Kickoff China with a 2-1 win over JDG Esports JDG Esports China Unranked stew Park Young-chan (박영찬) jkuro Yong Haochong (杨浩聪) MrCANI Chen Tingxun (陈廷训) Babyblue Geng Haoran (耿浩然) Z1yan Liu Zihan (刘紫涵) . They will next play against 2024 Champions EDward Gaming EDward Gaming China Unranked S1Mon Hsien Meng-Hsun (谢孟勋) ZmjjKK Zheng Yongkang (郑永康) nobody Wang Senxu (王森旭) CHICHOO Wan Shunzhi (万顺治) Smoggy Zhang Zhao (张钊) in hopes of continuing their lower bracket run. JDG is now eliminated from the tournament, and will need to wait until Stage 1 to return to competition.

Due to XLG being a VCT newcomer, the teams have only played each other in the off-season. Despite coming from tier 2, XLG has bested JDG on all three occasions, twice with a 2-0. In the veto, JDG picked Pearl, Xi Lai's usual second ban, while taking away Lotus, their permaban this event. XLG responded with their own permaban, Fracture, while picking Bind, a map which JDG lost to Dragon Ranger Gaming. Haven remained as decider, which JDG has floated in the past and won in overtime against DRG in their opening series.

XLG took the first rounds of the series with a pistol win on Pearl. Xi Lai took an early lead, but a thrifty win and stew 's heroics swung momentum back in JDG's favor. It was only until the final round of the half that XLG was able to answer back, as JDG guessed the wrong site in a 2v2 and allowed XLG to set up a Killjoy-Sova post-plant.

stew dominated the first half with 19 kills

Unorthodox decision making from JDG gave their opponents the second pistol round, which allowed them to tie the scoreline at 7-7. jkuro and Z1yan showed up to grant their team double digits and force XLG's second timeout. XLG was able to narrow the gap with a pair of rounds, but JDG's lead was too large to overcome. JDG eventually won the map 13-9. stew ended the series with 28 eliminations and 11 first kills, half of the server's total.

Moving onto Bind, Z1yan gave his team a close pistol win with a clutch and 3K. Not intent on being upstaged, Rarga secured two points for his team, and YOU matched his teammate by helping win the next two rounds. stew returned to the series with a 1v1, but XLG proved superior for the rest of the half. jkuro won a Brimstone 1v1 to give JDG the fourth point of the map, sending the series to the break 8-4 with XLG in the lead.

Rarga and YOU took over the attack on Bind

Z1yan tried to replicate his pistol round success in the second half, but XLG clawed the round back to further extend the score gap. Xi Lai continued winning disadvantaged rounds, taking the bonus with a 3v2 which XLG won with two Classic kills against rifles. JDG Esports tried forcing to prevent match point and extend the series, but they barely did economic damage. Bind ended 13-4 in XLG's favor, sending the series to the decider map.

A fast C push and stew 3K gave JDG the opening pistol round on Haven. Viva matched it with his own Classic triple kill in the anti-eco, and a JDG post-plant fumble gave Xi Lai a 2-1 lead. XLG remained comfortable in their defense, and Rarga found various multikills to help his team confirm rounds. After Viva aced with the Operator, JDG showed off a well-executed round with Z1yan faking information and a cautious A take, ending the first half 9-3.

Viva scores an ace to keep XLG in the lead

XLG reached 11 points with a comfortable pistol and anti-eco, but JDG reacted to prevent their opponents from reaching match point. Xi Lai remained patient, losing three rounds and a timeout but keeping their economy steady and building up an ultimate advantage. This let them run a set play on C, stalling long enough to turn Z1yan's triple kill inconsequential. A tactical pause from JDG had no effect, as Xi Lai ran a prepared fast hit that immediately reduced the final round to a 4v2. Xi Lai Gaming ended Haven 13-6, surviving elimination with the 2-1 victory.

The result means XLG will need to play against EDward Gaming, the region's historical juggernaut, to continue their lower bracket run and earn Championship points. JDG Esports, on the other hand, is eliminated from the event, another international tournament evading the organization.