Gentle Mates Reach the Game Changers Grand Final as KRÜ Blaze Keep Their Run Going
GAME MODE Staff·Oct 31, 2026· 3m read
Gentle Mates beat Shopify Rebellion Gold 2-1 on October 30. KRÜ Blaze, who knocked out the defending champions, play Shopify Rebellion Gold for the other final spot.
Gentle Mates are through to the Game Changers Championship grand final. They beat Shopify Rebellion Gold 2-1 in the upper bracket final on Friday, October 30, in São Paulo, at what Riot calls the final standalone Game Changers Championship.
KRÜ Blaze are still alive. Two days after knocking out defending champions Team Liquid VISA, they beat MIBR 2-0 in Friday’s lower bracket semifinal, and on Saturday, October 31, they play Shopify Rebellion Gold in a best-of-five lower bracket final for the other place in Sunday’s grand final.
KRÜ Blaze’s run through the lower bracket
KRÜ Blaze dropped to the lower bracket after a 2-0 upper semifinal loss to Shopify Rebellion Gold on October 27. A day later they met Team Liquid VISA, who came in as the defending champions after winning the 2025 title in Seoul, and swept them 2-0.
Liquid’s defense had started with a 2-0 loss to Gentle Mates in the upper quarterfinals on October 23, followed by lower-bracket sweeps of Nova Esports GC and G2 Gozen. MIBR, who lost to Gentle Mates in the upper semifinals, went out to KRÜ Blaze on Friday.
Every result so far
- October 22, upper round 1: MIBR 2-0 FENNEL; SK Nebula 2-0 Nova Esports GC
- October 23, upper quarterfinals: Gentle Mates 2-0 Team Liquid VISA; KRÜ Blaze 2-1 Gen.G GC
- October 24, upper quarterfinals: Shopify Rebellion Gold 2-0 SK Nebula; MIBR 2-0 G2 Gozen
- October 25, lower round 1: Team Liquid VISA 2-0 Nova Esports GC; FENNEL 2-1 Gen.G GC. Nova Esports GC and Gen.G GC are eliminated.
- October 26, lower round 2: Team Liquid VISA 2-0 G2 Gozen; SK Nebula 2-0 FENNEL. G2 Gozen and FENNEL are eliminated.
- October 27, upper semifinals: Shopify Rebellion Gold 2-0 KRÜ Blaze; Gentle Mates 2-0 MIBR
- October 28, lower quarterfinals: KRÜ Blaze 2-0 Team Liquid VISA; MIBR 2-0 SK Nebula. Team Liquid VISA and SK Nebula are eliminated.
- October 30, upper final and lower semifinal: Gentle Mates 2-1 Shopify Rebellion Gold; KRÜ Blaze 2-0 MIBR. MIBR are eliminated.
The last two days at Riot Games Arena São Paulo
Both remaining matches are best-of-five and start at 3 PM BRT.
| Date | Match | Format | Start |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, October 31 | Lower bracket final: Shopify Rebellion Gold vs KRÜ Blaze | Bo5 | 3 PM BRT |
| Sunday, November 1 | Grand final: Gentle Mates vs the lower bracket final winner | Bo5 | 3 PM BRT |
A Game Changers Fan Fest runs through November 1 at Community Creators Academy in São Paulo, at R$30 per day. Watching at least 30 minutes of the grand final earns the “Mais Que Amigas” spray Drop.
Riot’s VCT 2027 calendar graphic lists “Champions & Game Changers Championship” for September 16 to October 10, 2027, in Austin.
