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Valorant Champions Tour 2021 is scheduled to wrap up their year-long tournament with their grand final event, Valorant Champions 2021, which will be held in Berlin from December 1 to December 12.
Sixteen teams have earned the qualification to represent their respective regions in Valorant Champions 2021. While 11 teams have qualified through their regional circuit standings, a total of 4 teams clinched a last-minute ticket to Berlin through the regional Last Chance Qualifiers. The winners of VCT: Stage 3 Masters Berlin received automatic qualification to the Champions.
Among the 5 esports athletes fielded per game, a role that stands out is the In-Game Leader (IGL). Particularly in FPS titles, players are expected to show aggression in their performance as their primary goal in the game is to eliminate opponents. However, the IGL is a member of the team who is expected to keep his calm throughout all possible situations and guide the team to their expected results.
Taking into consideration the 16 teams contesting for the Valorant Champions 2021 title, Sportskeeda ranks the five best In-Game Leaders who are renowned for their leadership and are expected to guide their team to an incredible campaign at Valorant Champions Berlin 2021.
Who are the 5 best IGLs among teams participating in Valorant Champions Berlin 2021
5) Jake "Boaster" Howlett
Team: Fnatic (EMEA)
Agents: Sova, Astra, Breach
Jake "Boaster" Howlett is a former professional Counter Strike: Global Offensive who represented multiple teams over the course of 4 years, before retiring from the iconic game. After spending some time as a streamer and a stand-in for a League of Legends squad, Jake made the switch again. This time, he found his calling in Valorant. After a short stint with Sage Ult My Nan FC, he made his way to Fnatic, taking over as their leader.
On the world stage, Boaster is an eccentric individual known for his goofy antics in front of the camera. The 26-year-old is always known to maintain his cool and can often be seen doing something absolutely bizarre, be it post-match celebrations or his quirky antics during games.
Upon joining Fnatic, Boaster took over as the leader of a relatively young squad. Under his leadership, they competed in the finals of Valorant's first LAN event, VCT 2021: Stage 1 Masters Reykjavik. Fnatic qualified for Valorant Champions Berlin 2021 based on their EMEA circuit rankings.
4) Anthony "vanity" Malaspina
Team: Cloud9 Blue (NA)
Agents: Astra, Viper, Omen
Anthony "vanity" Malaspina is a retired American CSGO professional who played for various teams from 2018 to 2021, popularly with Chaos Gaming, a leading North American team. After being released by the organization, vanity made the switch to Valorant. He enjoyed success with the North American team, Version1, before signing on with Cloud9 Blue.
22-year-old vanity is renowned for his leadership skills and the ability to instantaneously analyze his opponents' decisions, which is essential for strategising in Valorant. Together with his newly formed squad, vanity put on an impressive performance at the North American Last Chance Qualifiers, his first major tournament with Cloud9 Blue.
Since his inclusion on the roster, Cloud9 Blue went on to win the NA Last Chance Qualifiers, thereby earning one of the finals spots for Valorant Champions Berlin 2021.
3) Elias "Jamppi" Olkkonen
Team: Team Liquid (EMEA)
Agents: Jett, Sova
Elias "Jamppi" Olkkonen is a Finnish ex-CSGO player who shifted to Valorant after failing to achieve his expectations in CSGO. Because of a blunder he committed as a 13-year-old, he was barred from participating in Valve-sponsored CSGO events. Nevertheless, the 20-year-old Jamppi was resilient and kept trying to make his mark with top-tier Finnish side ENCE. However, his disappointing performance forced him to make a direct switch to Valorant in February 2021.
Team Liquid acquired Jamppi as a replacement for then-IGL ec1s, as their Valorant team was performing poorly for the quality of players they possessed. He immediately took over as team leader, a decision that has been instrumental to Team Liquid's success in 2021. Jamppi is a versatile player who changes his in-game role according to what his team needs.
Team Liquid clinched their spot in the Valorant Champions Berlin 2021 by winning the EMEA Last Chance Qualifiers.
2) Pujan "FNS" Mehta
Team: Team Envy (NA)
Agents: Killjoy, Cypher, Viper
Pujan "FNS" Mehta is a retired Canadian CSGO player who is distinguished for his time at top-tier organizations like CLG, TSM, Complexity Gaming, and Cloud9, to name a few. The 29-year-old made the shift to Valorant with the formation of "together we are terrific" an organization-less team that was later acquired by esports giants Team Envy.
FNS is one of the smartest minds in the game and is acclaimed as North America's finest in-game leader. He spent 8 years in the professional Counter Strike scene, playing countless tournaments over the years. Teamed with a talented young roster, FNS can certainly lead Envy to great heights in Valorant.
Team Envy had a successful VCT Stage 3 Masters campaign, making it to the grand finals. They qualified for the Valorant Champions Berlin 2021 through their NA circuit rankings.
1) Shahzeb "ShahZam" Khan
Team: Sentinels (NA)
Agents: Jett, Sova
Shahzeb "ShahZam" Khan is a retired American professional CSGO player who is popular in the esports community for his time in several top-tier organizations such as Complexity Gaming, Misfits Gaming, OpTic Gaming, Cloud9, and TSM. He started his Valorant career after being acquired by Sentinels early in April 2020.
ShahZam is renowned for his eccentric nature and his incredible ability to maintain his calm in any difficult situation. With his experience of over 7 years in FPS gaming, ShahZam is the ideal candidate to lead a roster of North America's most valuable Valorant prospects. His streams on Twitch and YouTube show his distinct capability to analyze situations mid-game and communicate with random players conveniently.
Sentinels have been one of Valorant's most promising teams since the Stage 1 Challengers. Despite their disappointing campaign at the VCT Stage 3 Masters Berlin, their victory at the Stage 2 Masters Reykjavik allowed Sentinels to dominate the NA circuit rankings.
