Given their impressive showings on the international stage this year, many pegged Fnatic as heavy favorites at VALORANT Champions. But the last EMEA team finished fourth, eliminated on Thursday after their second loss to LOUD during playoffs.
While the likes of Boaster and Chronicle put on smiles at the post-match press conference, it was clear to those in the room that Fnatic was frustrated. For the third year in a row, a promising start to the season fizzled out in Champions, and this year was certainly the most successful up until the end of their run.
All that said, the success they found in Brazil, Berlin, and Japan could be what played a part in their demise in Los Angeles.
During the press conference, some of the players expressed their frustrations at the lack of prep they were afforded throughout the year and for Champions. “You stay ‘til the end of the event and you go again and you go again,” Boaster said, “and maybe everyone gets knocked out first and has a break to recuperate… and we’re going straight back into it.”
“We don’t have time to prepare,” added Chronicle. “It’s annoying for the team that’s able to qualify for every event; there’s no chance to be stable. There’s a bigger risk of burning out.”
Related: Pro VALORANT analyst says stacked 2024 schedule will cause ’10 times’ more player burnout
It’s important to note though that Fnatic did not solely blame the losses at Champions on a lack of prep caused by a busy schedule. Mini acknowledged early in the press conference that LOUD did a good job of preparing a composition that fared really well against theirs on Haven and admitted the team made some errors when it came to preparing for the event as a whole that would need to be hammered out privately.
Chronicle mentioning burnout is consistent with his concerns about the schedule next year. With two splits for each VCT league, two Masters events, and a two-week tournament to kick it all off in 2024, there are many more matches to be played.
Those matches feel more condensed than spread out, and while the goal for Riot is to give players a longer break at the end, it will certainly mean a much busier season.
