You thought EMEA and APAC had upsets? Think again. 

Welcome back to our Monthly BSC25 recap by BSEN, this time covering the Americas in the battle for glory. 

SOUTH AMERICA 

In South America, we had some big matches with bigger wifi issues. The first match of the day between LOUD and Ninguem Segura turned out to be a back and forth affair despite many predicting a sweep, especially considering the substitution of Rei Do Fut for Nubis. 2-0 sets across the board went back and forth between the two teams, but LOUD managed to come out on top and continue their run under the Brazilian giant. 

The 2nd quarter final between KaioPerro and Zurita Gang also turned out to be close, arguably closer than the first match of the day. Zurita Gang started strong and showed a great understanding of the slow-paced kill modes like Knockout and Bounty, but KaioPerro’s mechanics allowed them to take a set 5 win in the end. 

Casa Brawl Esports (formerly F/A Minipekkas) completed the only sweep of the day, taking down Otaku Legion in a 3-0 fashion. For the final quarterfinal of the day, a fractured SKC roster with the substitution of Nouthz for Kristian took on off-season champions Olimpo Squad SA in yet another 5 set match. SKC’s innovative drafts showed great promise for the team, but Olimpo Squad gained the upper hand. In set 4, SKC defeated Olimpo Squad at match point, but came short in the end as the final set of Bounty went 2-0 in favor of Olimpo Squad to let them advance to the semifinals. 

Despite a shaky start, LOUD had a point to prove, and took down KaioPerro in 4 sets, despite three of those having a 2-1 scoreline in games. Strong drafting allowed them to pick up Juju in the first two sets and an innovative Berry Ash strategy managed to steal away Hot Zone, allowing LOUD to once again advance to the grand finals. 

On the other side of the bracket, Casa Brawl Esports also took down their opponents in 4 sets, but in a slightly more convincing fashion. Despite losing a set, a total game record of 6-2 led them to a dominant 4 set win over Olimpo Squad after a questionable Kenji pick in Heist, advancing to the grand finals to once again face their regional rivals. 

Although it was difficult to watch, the grand finals proved to be a banger and arguably the best out of any region with every set going back and forth. LOUD drew first blood in heist, but failed to answer Pekka’s Melodie pick in set 2 to lose Brawl Ball despite managing to draft both Berry and Ash. LOUD took the third set of Hot Zone and were one game away from taking the win, but were stopped at the last second by Casa Brawl with some clutch kills in Bounty to take back the lead. In the fifth and final set, Casa Brawl started off strong to force their first match point of the series with a standard R-T, Brock, Gus comp, but LOUD fought back to force a double match point using their explosive Max, Pearl, Byron comp to overwhelm Casa Brawl. In the final game, LOUD’s execution fell short and small errors spiraled into a loss, leading Casa Brawl to take the first monthly final title of the year. 

NORTH AMERICA

Over in North America, the stakes were high as underdog stories seemed to be the name of the game. NA started strong with the first match of the day pitting the regional champions Tribe Gaming against the new blood with a point to prove, SKCalalas. Despite some issues with cams (cough cough Belal), Tribe started out strong taking the first two set against SKC. Despite winning a game in each of these sets, TRB’s teamwork shone bright to win both sets with convincing game 3s despite SKC antistrats. They didn’t go down without a fight though, as SKC’s speedy Max comp stole Bounty from Tribe. Despite yet another 3 game set, SKC were unable to complete the reverse sweep and Tribe Gaming took their first match of the day in a 3-1 fashion. 

The next match of the day was a rematch of the qualifiers with both teams determined to make a statement. Pioneers versus Spacestation was everything we could have hoped for from a match reminiscent of El Classico’s TRB v STMN with a new roster addition on both sides. SSG started out strong on Canal Grande and shut down Pioneers’ Darryl Kit combo, but a weird draft on Safe Zone tied the score. Pulling an uno reverse, SSG pulled out the cat roll strategy in the third set of knockout and rolled KCP to take the lead. Chino’s Mortis pick in Hot Zone turned out to be a bad gamble as he failed to find his stride in the third game of the set, losing out on the match point and leading to a 5 set Pioneers win. 

The bottom half of the bracket saw sweeps, but one of them might not be what you’d expect. Elevate steamrolled through newly signed Synchronic Gaming. Despite the established chemistry even with substitute genie, ELV comfortably took each set in convincing fashion without dropping a game and setting the current 2025 record for fastest set after Brawl Ball. The last quarterfinal of the day yielded its first upset: Havoc swept Code OG. Despite several close sets, OG’s roster couldn’t find their footing and were sat down by the likes of Vegeta, EveX, and Diegogamer. An unlikely roster of semipro talent that has been looking for their big break for a while formed under the Havoc banner and took down some of NA’s finest without breaking a sweat. 

In the quarterfinals, Tribe Gaming faced the old Tribe Gaming and proved their dominance in the 4 set win. Pioneers started off strong taking knockout, but Tribe were unfazed as they went 6-0 to win the next three sets and with it the series. In the second semifinal, the second major upset of the day happened in the match between Elevate and Havoc. Despite close scorelines, Elevate went up 2-0 in sets, looking poised to move onto another Grand Finals and complete the TRB revenge arc storyline against their former org. That is, they were poised until Havoc came alive. In the upset of the month from any region, Havoc completed a nearly flawless reverse sweep to take the match in 5 sets. Evex shined as a star in the match, a player known for his aggressive playstyle and tank picks. His fearsome Ash in the third and fourth sets struck fear into the hearts of Elevate who seemed unable to select comfort picks that also countered Havoc’s comfort picks, also slipping up in letting Juju escape as a first pick for the side of Havoc in multiple sets. Despite a fumbled goal in the first game of the fifth set, Evex’s Buzz pick shut down Elevate’s attempts at success as Zhar struggled throughout the set, leading to a 2-1 set victory and a 5 set match victory for Havoc as they advanced to their first Grand Final. 

Despite the miracle run, the kings of NA proved too much for Havoc to overcome. Tribe Gaming took the Grand Finals in 4, reclaiming the organization’s honor as the top of North America and proving their superiority over the region continues into 2025. Havoc started strong with a set 1 victory in heist, but Tribe maintained composure and dropped one game in the next three sets to take the win similar to the semifinals. Nevertheless, it was an amazing underdog run and we’re excited to see what Havoc can contest in future months.