The new Global Esports roster continues its journey at the VCT 2025: Pacific Kickoff. In the second round, they will face Talon Esports, participants of the 2025 World Championship who have fully retained their roster. In this analysis, we will again attempt to predict the winner of this match, considering various aspects.

Current Form of Teams

Talon Esports

The team has shown mixed results recently. Their performances at the TEN VALORANT Asia Invitational 2024 and SOOP VALORANT League 2024 highlight their inconsistency, with a second-place finish in the first tournament and a 7th-8th finish in the second. Talon has lost three of their last five matches, indicating possible internal issues or weak preparation during the offseason. However, the team made no roster changes after the 2024 season, which could benefit them against teams that altered their lineups.

Global Esports

Global Esports was relatively inactive during the offseason, participating only in their own show tournament. They have won three of their last five matches, including a victory against Team Secret in their debut match at the VCT 2025: Pacific Kickoff. The most significant change is their complete roster overhaul—starting 2025 with a fresh lineup, making them unpredictable opponents.

Map Pool Analysis

Bans:

• Talon Esports will likely ban Haven.
• Global Esports may ban Bind, given Talon Esports' strong win rate on this map.

Picks:

• Talon Esports will probably choose Lotus, their most-played map with a solid win rate.
• Global Esports might select Split, as it was their pick in their debut match at the tournament.

Additional Bans:

• Talon Esports is expected to ban Fracture to avoid unexpected strategies from Global Esports' new roster.
• Global Esports may ban Abyss, considering its popularity in Talon Esports' choices.

Decider:

• Pearl is the most likely map to remain as the decider.

Head-to-Head Record

This will be the first match for Global Esports' new roster against Talon Esports. The lack of prior matchups adds an element of mystery, making it harder for Talon Esports to prepare against opponents they have only seen in one match, while Talon has played half a season with their current roster.

Match Prediction

Given Talon Esports' stable roster, the team has an advantage in synergy and experience. However, their recent weak results and lack of updates could work against them. On the other hand, Global Esports, with a new roster and fresh approach, might surprise, but their lack of cohesion and offseason tournaments raises questions about their stability.

Predicted Outcome: 2-1 in favor of Talon Esports, where their experience is likely to outweigh Global Esports' unpredictability.

The VCT 2025: Pacific Kickoff runs from January 18 to February 9 in a LAN format at the Sangam Colosseum in Seoul, South Korea. Twelve partner teams from the VCT program are competing for two invitations to the Masters Bangkok tournament and critical Pacific Points needed for World Championship qualification.