FNATIC FNATIC Europe Rank #3 Sayonara Ștefan Mîtcu stand-in Boaster Jake Howlett kaajak Kajetan Haremski Chronicle Timofey Khromov Alfajer Emir Ali Beder kickstarted their VCT EMEA Stage 2 playoffs run with a 2-1 victory over Karmine Corp Karmine Corp Europe Rank #31 saadhak Matias Delipetro Avez Hazem Khaled Elite Efe Teber SUYGETSU Dmitry Ilyushin marteen Martin Pátek , the third in a row against the Blue Wall.

Tonight's win is a point of consistency for FNATIC, who are on a flawless run since returning from China, and inches them closer to another EMEA title. It's also their third consecutive win against Karmine Corp.

FNATIC have traditionally made short work of KCorp in their bouts since the latter's inception into the VCT. KCorp's only win in that time was in this year's Kickoff semifinals, where they took a 2-0 shortly before lifting the trophy altogether.

Today, however, was an exception, as the two teams endured a grueling series that only ended with FNATIC's 13-6 victory on Lotus. Prior to that, though, the momentum seemed to be all for the Blue Wall.

Despite a hot start from Alfajer , when he dropped four in the second round, his team quickly cooled off. KCorp pressed on to a 13-7 win, and nearly made the same happen on Sunset, where FNATIC needed an overtime in map two to eventually clinch a match win.

A heroic performance from hiro was the deciding factor, as it was his 30-bomb and 1.29 rating that let FNATIC bounce back from a sure loss to a 15-13 win on Sunset. He also kicked Lotus off the right way with the game's only ace.

Never forget that wall is paper-thin.

FNATIC's early control on Icebox and Sunset seemed to slip from them in later rounds, but they remained headstrong on Lotus and never gave KCorp room to breathe. This was due, in part, to several key rounds from the likes of Chronicle . Despite being the fourth-best player in the server by rating, his six multikills kept KCorp at bay throughout the decider.

At the end of it all though, Alfajer and hiro were the ones to stand out from the crowd, totalling 105 kills between them and holding up a 1.09 and 1.03 rating, respectively. Even still, those numbers pale in comparison to the heroics of N4RRATE and sh1n , as they averaged a 1.30 and 1.11 match rating.

The KCorp pair's stats were better in most fields compared to the FNATIC duo, but were not enough to carry their team over the line.

Alfajer excited on stage As FNATIC's lead grew, so did Alfajer's hype. (Photo by Michal Konkol/Riot Games)

Karmine Corp's elimination does not spell the end for them, though. EMEA will take four teams to Champions via points — five if FNATIC win the Stage 2 playoffs — and the Blue Wall currently sit in fourth. Should Vitality slide and crash out of the playoffs — which would require consecutive losses to Team Heretics Team Heretics Europe Rank #1 MiniBoo Dominykas Lukaševičius Wo0t Mert Alkan RieNs Enes Ecirli benjyfishy Benjamin David Fish Boo Ričardas Lukaševičius and FUT Esports FUT Esports Europe Rank #7 xeus Doğan Gözgen MrFaliN Furkan Yeğen yetujey Eray Budak AtaKaptan Ata Tan cNed Mehmet Yağız İpek qRaxs Doğukan Balaban /FNATIC — KCorp will edge them out in points and qualify for Seoul.

FNATIC, on the other hand, are cruising easy. The team have already claimed their spot at Champions via circuit points, and are now merely fighting for regional glory.

Tonight's win is the start of a run towards an unprecedented third regional title in EMEA, back-to-back EMEA trophies, and a way for FNATIC to remind themselves they can still be the international powerhouse that dominated 2023.

They just have to take it one step at a time. The next step is tomorrow, when they take on FUT Esports in the second semifinal of the upper bracket.