DRX vs Fnatic: VALORANT Champions Paris 2025 Lower Finals Preview

The top three teams for VALORANT Champions Paris 2025 are now solidified. With NRG waiting in the wings of the Grand Finals Stage, it now comes down to two teams: Fnatic and DRX to see which team and region will join NRG as finalist. With less than 24 hours before its decided, there’s a lot to anticipate coming into this matchup.

A Rivalry as Old as the Game

Fnatic and DRX. Two titans of the early VALORANT competitive scene that continue to compete and thrive in today’s landscape. It’s almost clockwork that every Champions, these two find themselves in a clash for survival – and it almost always delivers.

Back in 2021, when VALORANT esports was still in its infancy and we watched the first Champions unfold in Berlin, Fnatic and DRX (then known as Vision Strikers), clashed in the Winners match of their group. The victor – Fnatic – emerged victorious and qualified to the Playoffs, where they fell in the quarterfinals. Vision Strikers found themselves eliminated after a close match against C9 in the decider.

In 2022, Fnatic and DRX once again met in the Lower Quarterfinals of Champions Istanbul. This time DRX emerged the victor after a full three-map series. This happened again in 2023, when again, DRX and Fnatic met in the Lower Quarterfinals of Champions LA. This time, Fnatic took down DRX but were then shortly eliminated by LOUD the following series. In Seoul, the two teams faced earlier in the tournament, matching up in the Group Stage, where DRX took the series in 2 to qualify for Playoffs.

The two teams have already met once before in the Upper Quarterfinals of Paris. Fnatic pulled from the depths then to recover from a 2-10 deficit to pull off a win. But that was the Upper Bracket, safe from elimination. Now the two will have to compete with all the cards on the table to survive elimination and reach that Grand Finals stage. For either team, it will make history.

Fnatic: Recovering an Era

Fnatic is perhaps the team closest in meaning when one in VALORANT esports refers to dominance or an era. No other team in the history of the game has managed to accomplish the feats they did across the timescale they did it in. In 2023, Fnatic, off the back of a roster shuffle, took down Brazilian powerhouse LOUD in one of the most memorable Grand Finals at VCT LOCK//IN. They then doubled down at the next event, VCT Masters Tokyo, to win their second international title of the year.

While other organizations and players have lifted more than one international title across their lifespan (Sentinels comes to mind), no other team has managed to maintain their form for 2 consecutive titles, cementing their legacy and connecting their brand to success in the minds of many. Their exploits in Toronto, reaching the Grand Finals after an incredible Lower Bracket run are still fresh in many memories. And while Fnatic has not looked anywhere near as dominant as they have in years prior, the magic continues. In the most despairing of scorelines, Fnatic continues to deliver.

Fnatic’s run at Paris so far has been a mix to say the least. Their run through the Group Stage, while fairly impressive, was also a step below their usual mark of excellence. However, the team truly came to live in the Playoffs, delivering on everything we have come to expect from this collection of players.

It is then perhaps, poetic irony, that it wasn’t the crucial match against Paper Rex in the Upper Semifinals where the team faltered. While star player Emir “Alfajer” Ali Beder had to sit on the sidelines while his team battled the tournament darlings and the squad had to field substitute Domagoj “Doma” Fancev. But rather, it was against NRG today, where the team appeared truly stumped against a fierce NRG opposition, especially on Abyss.

Now Fnatic will need to deliver all they have remaining against one of their fiercest international rivals if they want any hope of reaching the Grand Finals stage on Sunday.

DRX: History in the Making

Few believed in DRX when the team first qualified for Champions Paris. But those few swelled quickly after their opening match against Team Liquid, swiftly putting away EMEA’s top seed in an unexpectedly decisive series. The team that had so little expectations coming into Champions Paris is still here, and they’re still continuing to surprise. DRX’s squad may not have looked their best domestically, but here on the international stage, their players are delivering in spades.

Mechanical brilliance, innovative agent compositions and a bold unapologetic approach to the game, DRX look unstoppable. Historically a team that has never made it past 5th-6th in Champions placing, this is not the same DRX anymore. They’ve made it to the top 4. Now they’ve secured top 3, and on the cusp of securing a finals and a date against NRG, another dark horse contender.

Before today, Paper Rex were still the favored champions of Paris. The winners of Toronto were dethroned today by a team that continues to be underestimated by fans globally. Perhaps its time we took them seriously.

DRX are here to play at Champions Paris, and they’re here to win it all.

Fnatic and DRX will face off tomorrow in the Accor Arena at 1pm CET/4am PDT. Catch the game on Twitch or YouTube. Follow along the stats on Strafe Esports.

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Featured Image Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games

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