South Built Esports (SBE) secures Valorant APAC playoffs slot

VCT PH Stage 1 champs South Built Esports (SBE) advanced to playoffs of 2022 Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) APAC Stage 1 Challengers, putting the team one step closer to representing the region in Iceland this April.

SBE finished second in Group D with a 2-1 record, trailing Thai juggernaut Full Sense (FS).

After being crushed in the series opener by Full Sense, SBE went on to sweep Hong Kong's Oblivion Force (OF) and India's Velocity Gaming (VLT) to earn a playoff spot.

The playoffs or knockouts stage will feature the top eight squads. It will be a double-elimination format (upper bracket and lower bracket), and all matches will be played in a best-of-three series except grand finals (best-of-five).

On Thursday, March 24 at 8:30 PM, SBE will face Paper Rex in the upper bracket quarterfinals. The winner will move to the semifinals while the loser will go through the lower bracket.

SBE is the tournament's lone remaining Filipino team after NAOS Esports was eliminated in the group stages.

Another Filipino squad, Action PH, had an early exit in the play-ins.

The first and second placers of the VCT APAC Stage 1 Challengers will represent the region in the VCT Masters event, which will take place in Reykjavik, Iceland, from April 10 to 24.

To recall, Bren Esports was the first Filipino Valorant squad to earn a VCT Masters slot in 2021 but were forced to withdraw due to visa concerns. Following the incident, the players left Bren Esports. They were later acquired by Team Secret.

South Built Esports - Valorant Roster

• Johnty "JA" Arone
• Elmer "micr0" Coloma
• Chris "Pro" Martir
• Deko "PapiChulo" Evangelista
• Azis "azys" Nandang
• Jan Philip "flippy" Marique

Image via South Built Esports