Get our VALORANT Champions 2026 playoff betting tips, predictions and odds for October 9, featuring T1 vs Paper Rex and 100 Thieves vs Nongshim.
VALORANT Champions 2026 playoffs continue on Friday, October 9, with the first two lower bracket bouts, as 100 Thieves face off against Nongshim RedForce, and Paper Rex clash with their regional rivals, T1.
Esportbet brings you free VALORANT previews and expert picks for the two games, along with odds from the best bookmakers for VALORANT Champions betting.
T1 and Paper Rex clash for the fourth time this season and the first since early VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 Pacific Stage 2, when T1 won their first head-to-head of the year.
Paper Rex did not have a great run through Stage 2, but they entered VALORANT Champions as one of the teams to watch, largely due to their ability to step it up in big events and the raw experience of this roster. T1, on the other side, did not have a big target on their backs ahead of the world championship, and they’ve yet to amaze.
With a 0-2 loss against 100 Thieves and two wins against JD Gaming and FUT Esports, T1 have not produced anything amazing in the group stage. Their defeat against NRG in the quarterfinals hardly inspires confidence.
T1 can be a dangerous team as they boast a lot of firepower and like to force high-tempo games. Paper Rex are similar in that regard, but that same approach didn’t work for them against LOUD.
Paper Rex should be favored, but T1 have caused them issues before, and Paper Rex have shown some holes in their map pool this tournament. A closer game is to be expected.
Over 2.5 maps
100 Thieves slipped against their regional rivals, G2 Esports, in the upper bracket quarterfinals and lost with 5-13 on Abyss and 11-13 on Ascent. Nongshim RedForce, meanwhile, lost to the high-flying Team Vitality, but they put on a show and nearly completed a reverse sweep.
This is an interesting game between two of the world’s best VALORANT teams. 100 Thieves are listed as favorites by the best esports bookmakers, mainly due to how good they’ve looked heading into the tournament. But Nongshim RedForce are no pushovers, as shown in their narrow loss to Team Vitality.
This match should be closer to 50/50 than what the latest odds suggest, making Nongshim RedForce a very inviting pick at plus money.
Nongshim RedForce to win
Mark Prezelj
Esports Betting Analyst
Mark Prezelj is a Slovenian esports betting analyst with over 3,500 articles at EsportBet and the founder of Lines64.com — someone who has been reading odds longer than most readers have been watching esports.
