A Deep Look into Team Liquid’s Battle in the VCT EMEA Kickoff

In the 2026 VCT EMEA Kickoff, Team Liquid squared off against Karmine Corp. This came on the heels of a challenging defeat from Team Vitality the previous week, placing Liquid in the Middle Bracket with just two lives left. The best-of-three upper round 2 match occurred on January 27, 2026 at 4:00 PM on patch 12.01. The maps chosen were Abyss (selected by Karmine Corp), Split (picked by Team Liquid), and Breeze as the decider.

Unfortunately, Team Liquid’s performance in Map 1 was less than ideal, putting them in a tough position. However, they mustered their strength and executed a stunning turnaround, pulling off a reverse sweep that led to their first official win of the season.

Community Reception and Post Series Interview

The community’s response to Karmine Corp’s triumph over Team Liquid was overwhelmingly positive, with enthusiastic comments like “KC 2-0 ez blue wall clears” and “Sheydos MVP”. Karmine Corp not only won the series with a score of 2-0 but also dominated the veto process. They banned the Pearl map, chose Abyss, and then banned Corrode, leaving only Breeze as the final selection.

After the competition, Strafe Esports sat with Ayaz “nAts” Akhmetshin, the IGL and captain of Team Liquid. They discussed various aspects of the tournament, including the difficulties of starting a new season with a substitute during Week 1 and Akhmetshin’s growth as a leader among his team.

Highlights and Statistics

Noteworthy moments came from Karmine Corp players such as Suygetsu’s impressive flanks, employing strategic utility control on sites. On the Abyss map, Team Liquid initially struggled in the early rounds and continued to feel the pressure throughout the series. On websites like VLR.gg, community predictions were fairly evenly split, with expectations of either a 2-0/2-1 score for both teams, but Karmine Corp took the win.

Users could also access betting tips and predictions on the EGamersWorld website for the duration of this face-off.

Complete stats, video-on-demand content, and detailed player ACS/KAST/ADR breakdowns can be found on the event page on VLR.gg. The match concluded with Karmine Corp advancing to the next round.

Additional Information

The Team Liquid vs. Karmine Corp Valorant match was unique to the VCT EMEA Kickoff and should not be confused with the League of Legends LEC Versus game that happened on January 26. In that separate match, Natus Vincere (NAVI) took on Karmine Corp. The NAVI lineup included players like Maynter (top) and Rhilech (jungle) while Karmine Corp had players such as Canna (top) and Yike (jungle).