The VCT 2021: Stage 2 Masters - Reykjavík tournament kicked off on Monday with three matches. As the first international LAN matches in VALORANT history, Monday's matches showed us a little bit of what is in store during this interregional competition.

TL;DR:

• NA and EU teams looked dominant as expected
• Korea and Japan both defied expectations with their surprisingly good performances
• Latin America and Brazil struggled to find momentum in early matches
  
  

Fnatic demonstrates EU 's strength in convincing win over Latin America's KRU esports

EU-based Fnatic looked very strong in their first match against the Latin American KRU Esports. They won the match in a 2-0 sweep, winning both maps in a decisive fashion. Fnatic will face off with the Sentinels in the Upperbracket Round 1 tomorrow, which will be our first chance to see NA and EU throw down in VALORANT.

NA-based Version 1 shows "pros don't fake" in victory over Japanese team Crazy Raccoon

While NA-based Version 1 beat the Japanese-based Crazy Raccoon in a 2-0 series on Monday, both maps were very close. Crazy Raccoon showed that individual prowess can indeed take you a long way, but it was Version 1's teamwork and coordination that won the day. The most notable play of the match involved Jordan "Zellsis" Montemurro sticking a plant under intense pressure to set up match point on Icebox. Pros don't fake and don't you forget it.

Nuturn Gaming shows Korea is a contender with victory over Sharks Esports

Sharks Esports from Brazil showed off a much more tactical and disciplined approach to VALORANT than most analysts expected, but Nuturn Gaming from Korea still ran away with the series, taking six flawless rounds on map 3.  The Korean squad showed tremendous strategic depth in adapting to the Brazilian team's playstyle after losing Map 1 badly. With that level of versatility, Nuturn could be a real contender against EU and NA teams in upcoming matches.

While Monday gave us a first look at region power levels, the next few days will be even more illuminating as we see more regions square off and more contenders rise and fall. The first battle between NA and EU will take place tomorrow, with NA's Sentinels facing off against EU's Fnatic and EU's Team Liquid facing NA's Version 1.