Global Esports completes miracle run, claims first VCT Pacific title
MANILA, Philippines — Global Esports completed a stunning lower-bracket resurgence to claim its first-ever VCT Pacific championship, defeating Nongshim RedForce, 3-2, in a reverse sweep in the Stage 2 grand finals on Saturday.
Featuring Filipino standouts Patrick "PatMen" Mendoza and Xavier "xavi8k" Juan, Global Esports overcame a 0-2 series deficit before winning the final three maps to secure the Pacific crown and cap off a playoff run few expected at the start of the season.
The championship concluded an eventful Stage-2 run for the multinational roster. Having seen multiple achievements in the first half of the 2026 season like securing its first playoffs slot and qualifying for its first international tournament, Global Esports dropped its former head coach, which saw many doubt the team's upcoming campaign in Stage 2. But Global Esports proved them wrong, not only securing a top two finish in the Group stages but also taking down tournament favorites DRX and Varrel in the upper bracket.
The win streak, however, was stopped by masters Santiago winners, Nongshim RedForce, which dropped them to the lower bracket after a 2-1 defeat.
The defeat placed Global Esports one loss away from elimination.
"I mean, possibly our last game. So I think just have fun and just play. And this is probably the last season of Pacific, so we're just going to live in the moment and have fun,” said Juan following the loss to Nongshim.
Despite the setback, Global Esports remained alive in the race for Valorant Champions Shanghai. The team officially secured a berth at the season-ending world championship after T1 eliminated Varrel in the lower bracket following Global Esports' loss to Nongshim.
With qualification secured, Global Esports turned its focus toward another shot at the Pacific title.
The squad earned that opportunity after defeating T1 3-1 in the lower bracket final to book a grand final rematch against Nongshim.
Following the upper-bracket loss, Juan said the team focused less on expectations and more on enjoying the moment, a mentality that helped reset Global Esports heading into the do-or-die match.
"This is our passion, playing esports and competing in tournaments like this. What's the point of playing if you're not having fun and enjoying it? I think deep inside, we're all still kids who like playing video games. So if you remove that factor, I guess it changes the environment of the team. Today we were really just enjoying and playing our hearts out, having fun, but still playing disciplined. So yeah, I think it's a really big factor still,” said Juan after the win over T1.
Mendoza echoed that sentiment, admitting the team never expected to find itself one win away from a title.
"We don't expect to be here actually. But we made it through. We're at the lowest lows and highest highs also in the last few months. There's a lot of things that shouldn't happen. But things can be stressful. It's inevitable. I'm so proud of everyone that we're able to make it to the grand finals,” said Mendoza.
The title match initially appeared headed in Nongshim's favor. The Korean squad edged out Global Esports, 13-11, on Sunset before dominating Split, 13-2, to move within a map of the championship.
Rather than crumble under the pressure, GE responded with three straight map wins. The comeback started with a crucial 13-10 victory on Abyss before the multinational roster seized complete control on Lotus, racing to an 11-1 first half en route to a commanding 13-5 result to force a decider.
In the final map, Haven saw a tight lock between the two teams, seeing a 6-6 at halftime. But Global Esports held its nerve as it switched to its attacking side, winning crucial 1v1s to secure a 13-10 victory, completing the reverse sweep and delivering the organization's first VCT Pacific title.
Head coach Daniel "Platoon" Zhou credited the team's ability to stay together through an often turbulent season.
"At the start of the stage, it was really tough. And for us to stay strong mentally through that, we just looked to each other. We really turned to each other and stayed beside each other to help and support each other. I think what we saw today on the third map, we kind of let the outside pressure and nerves get to us on the first two. But what I saw on the third is the same brotherhood and friendship that we've grown from the start of the stage and from the start of the year honestly that has taken us this far,” said Zhou after their win.
As the captain of Global Esports, Juan credited the team's resilience for helping complete the reverse sweep.
"The reverse sweep was amazing. We were down 0-2 and I think on the third map we all just rallied together and, you know, we had nothing to lose anymore. If we lose, we're out, so might as well just give it our all. And after that, the momentum just came back and we won the next three maps,” said Juan during the team's post-match conference.
For Mendoza, who became the sole player across the entire VCT franchise to win two regional trophies with two different teams, the title served as validation after months of doubt surrounding the roster.
"This trophy means very much to me because we're the team that no one expected to be here. Everyone doubted us, everyone looked down on us, some players, some teams, and now look at us. We're able to lift the trophy. I don't need a superstar team. I don't need superstar players. We can win,” said Mendoza.
The victory caps of an unbelievable year for Global Esports. At the start of the franchise era up until last year, the team had not qualified for playoffs let alone an international tournament. But with a major roster revamp at the start of the 2026, Global Esports saw it break all its franchise era records: booking their first playoffs; qualifying for their first Masters; beating every single team within the VCT Pacific franchise; qualifying for their first Champions; and capping it off with its first VCT Pacific trophy.
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