VCT 2026 EMEA Stage 1 betting predictions – Thursday, April 2

VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) 2026 EMEA Stage 1 continues on Thursday, April 2, with the second day of action, when Team Vitality will face off against GIANTX, followed by a clash between Gentle Mates and FUT Esports.

Esportbet brings you VALORANT betting predictions and picks for the two series, with esports odds from the top-rated VALORANT bookmakers.

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TEAM VITALITY vs GIANTX

Best Odds	VIT -250 at BetOnline | GX +175 at SportsBetting
When	April 2, 2026 | 17:00 CEST
Watch Live	Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/valorant_emea)

Team Vitality are heavily favored to defeat GIANTX in their first match of VCT EMEA Stage 1. While GIANTX were not terrible in VCT Kickoff, they did not look great either, beating just Team Heretics and PCIFFIC Esports, before they crashed out in the mid bracket quarterfinals, with a 0-2 loss against Team Vitality.

Vitality won that game convincingly, and even produced the season’s first 13-0 on Abyss. While a lot of time has passed since, the teams have not changed, making it hard to make a solid case for the outsiders.

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  The bookies' bookie

There’s also an argument to be made that Team Vitality are the strongest team in the league. Their Kickoff performances would not prove it, but the raw quality of the players on this roster is enough to have very high expectations for the Bees.

Another 2-0 sweep for Team Vitality is a likely outcome.

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GENTLE MATES vs FUT ESPORTS

Best Odds	M8 -227.27 at BetOnline | FUT +162 at SportsBetting
When	April 2, 2026 | 20:00 CEST
Watch Live	Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/valorant_emea)

Gentle Mates are $1.44 favorites to defeat FUT Esports on the top-rated VALORANT bookmakers, which does not sound wrong.

Gentle Mates were one of the best teams of VCT Kickoff, winning a silver medal after a close 2-3 loss against BBL Esports in the upper bracket final and a 3-2 victory against Fnatic in the mid bracket.

The big question with Gentle Mates is whether they will be as successful in Stage 1. In VCT Kickoff, they relied a lot on Martin “marteen” Pátek to do most of the heavy lifting. And while he delivered, his teammates haven’t been that great.

That became an even bigger issue at Masters Santiago, where Gentle Mates failed to accomplish anything. So if marteen doesn’t have as strong of a stage as he had in the Kickoff event, and if his teammates do not step up, Gentle Mates could emerge as a mid-table team.

While Gentle Mates should be favored, they are too unreliable to believe they can run over FUT Esports. Expect a closer game.