LOUD captain Matias ‘Saadhak’ Delipetro has played down the notion that there is extra pressure to be playing Valorant Champions in North America, stating that the home crowd hasn’t shown much support for his team.
The Brazilian team clinched a spot in the Valorant Champions 2023’s upper bracket semi-finals on Wednesday following a 2-0 victory over Fnatic, who suffered their first defeat in international matches this year.
For LOUD, the opportunity to take revenge on Fnatic provided extra motivation for the match. The two teams had last faced each other in the VCT LOCK//IN grand final, with the EMEA side running out 3-2 victors in a thrilling series that remains the second most-watched match in Valorant history.
But even though LOUD is only one of just two teams left in Los Angeles who are representing the Americas region, the home crowd doesn’t seem to be rallying behind them. According to Saadhak, North American fans haven’t shown much support for his team this tournament.
“To be honest, it doesn’t seem that we’re representing the Americas,” Saadhak said at a press conference after the match against Fnatic. “A lot of people here are rooting for teams from Europe, for anyone that isn’t us, to be honest.
“A lot of our fans are Brazilian, there aren’t many Americans rooting for us. So I think the teams we are facing are feeling very comfortable.”
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Saadhak added that he hopes the team will be able to win over the crowd if they continue winning. “If we keep performing well, maybe we will have more people supporting us. But for now, it doesn’t seem like the teams that have come over are being pressured.”
Saadhak slams LOUD rumors
One of the biggest talking points ahead of Valorant Champions was how LOUD would perform amid rumors of internal clashes. Star player Erick ‘aspas’ Santos, whose contract runs out at the end of the year, has been linked with a new challenge, with Sentinels and NRG both rumored to be after his signature.
“A lot of media outlets said that our team was over,” Saadhak said. “Liars. It’s all lies.
“We are still here, we are still working, we are still doing our stuff. We trust each other. And that translates into us doing well. But that doesn’t happen overnight. It’s always a lot of hard work and trust in each other.”
LOUD will return to action in Los Angeles on August 19 against Paper Rex, with a spot in the upper bracket final on the line.
