The second half of the Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS) top 64 concluded in Europe, with teams vying for a chance to advance to league play. The upsets and surprises were just as prevalent in North America as they were in Europe, with closely skilled teams competing for the final eight spots.
The first upset of the day didn't take long, with PENTA Sports losing to kden in commanding 3-1 fashion in the first round. Europe's No. 3 seed looked to be in trouble early as it fell into a tough losers' bracket.
Qualifier Match 1 saw RLCS One runners-up FlipSid3 Tactics and their new roster beat Good Mourning 3-1 to qualify comfortably for league play. Mockit Aces advanced 3-0 past Cytons in the next qualifying match, thanks in part to avoiding the matchup with Penta.
The third qualifying match turned out to be the match of the day, with Ohmydog falling in Game 5 to Northern Gaming, who made it through the open qualifiers. The final winners' bracket qualifying match was a result that had uncanny parallels to RLCS One. Precision Z upset Supersonic Avengers 3-1 to put them into the losers' bracket and opened up questions about whether SA could cut it on the big stage.
The losers' bracket featured some results no one expected. Qualifying Match 1 featured Summit -- who beat Cow Nose -- and Good Mourning. Summit managed to advance in a tight five-game series while Good Mourning almost pulled off the reverse sweep. Qualifying Match 2 between Cytons and Red Eye was the unexpected matchup; neither team was expected to be this close, and yet they both were one set away from league play. In the end, Red Eye took the match 3-0.
Qualifying Match 3 between Ohmydog and Luminous was an exciting match despite the confident 3-1 win for Ohmydog as they advanced to the group stage. They're looking to keep their blazing-hot form going, since they've shown they can compete with the top of the European scene. The final match of the day was Supersonic Avengers looking to qualify versus a strong Sector One side. SA managed to take the series 3-0.
Whether it's fan favorites making it in at the last minute or FlipSid3 showing a generally unmatched level of dominance, RLCS' European qualifiers leave little to be desired. However, there is one question going into next week: Can Supersonic Avengers perform on the big stage?