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G2 Gozen crowned inaugural Red Bull Instalock Champions with Grand Finals sweep

• G2 Gozen were crowned inaugural champions of Red Bull Instalock in 3-1 win against VCT Game Changers 2023 champions Shopify Rebellion
• The invitational tournament ran from 20-21 April at the UK’s premier esports and gaming venue, the Red Bull Gaming Sphere in London
• Red Bull Instalock brought together some of the best women’s VALORANT GC teams from around the world including G2 Gozen, GIANTX, Shopify Rebellion and Karmine Corp
• The tournament was hosted by Yinsu Collins, with insights from Kieran “Kairo” Tulloch, Billie “BillieIDK” Purdie, Matt “Twiggy” Twigg, and Harry “Hazza” Chapman and an appearance from Megan “Megsoundslikeegg” Garner
• AGON by AOC was the official Monitor Partner for Red Bull Instalock, providing cutting-edge AGON PRO AG254FG monitors, featuring a 360 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms response time, for the best in-game experience.

G2 Gozen have been crowned the inaugural Red Bull Instalock champions, claiming the victory across a weekend packed with exhilarating VALORANT matches and tactical plays. Streamed live from London’s premier esports and gaming venue, the Red Bull Gaming Sphere, Red Bull Instalock marked the UK’s first professional women’s VALORANT tournament of 2024.

Red Bull Instalock brought together four of the world’s best professional women’s VALORANT teams for a spectacle tournament, G2 Gozen, GIANTX, Karmine Crop, and 2023 VALORANT Champions Tour: Game Changers Championship winners Shopify Rebellion. Putting a unique twist on the traditional team composition, the competing teams were required to implement three of the game’s offensive class, duelists.

Red Bull Instalock quickly established itself as a high-stakes competition, with teams racing to dominate maps across a best-of-three format across the Upper Semi-Finals. The first game of the tournament saw powerhouse G2 Gozen battle it out against underdogs GIANTX, with GIANTX securing their position in the Upper Finals with a tiebreaker victory against G2 Gozen (2-1).

The second match featured North America’s Shopify Rebellion, who swiftly relegated the French force of Karmine Corp to the Lower Bracket (2-0). Facing off once again, G2 Gozen vanquished GIANTX in a Lower Bracket match underdog victory, securing themselves a position in the Grand Final to compete against Shopify Rebellion (2-0).

This Lower Bracket victory marked a turning point for G2 Gozen, who delivered a flawless masterclass in VALORANT against the North American titans Shopify Rebellion. The Grand Final was an intense showdown, pivoting to a best-of-five format in a battle for the crown. Shopify Rebellion started off strong, with a one-map lead, a reward following their success in the Semi-Finals, but G2 Gozen quickly closed in on that lead as they took the first and second maps. In a gripping third and final map, G2 Gozen swiftly closed out the tournament, claiming the win over the tournament frontrunners and Game Changers 2023 champions Shopify Rebellion (3-1).

The tournament also featured a show match featuring some of the UK’s most beloved VALORANT creators going head-to-head, including Talia Mar, Shan “ThePizzaWaffle” Hadden, Ella “Tenshi” Merry and Alexandra “LexieMariex” Butterfill. Hosted by British FNATIC content creator and partnered streamer Megan “Megsoundslikeegg” Garner, the nail biting creator show match saw Team Jupi take the win after a surprise comeback from Team Tenshi forced the match into overtime.

Kieran “Kairo” Tulloch, Billie “BillieIDK” Purdie, Matt “Twiggy” Twigg, and Harry “Hazza” Chapman were also part of the broadcast, providing live commentary and analysis.

Following the gripping grand finals, recently crowned Red Bull Instalock champion, G2 Gozen Pro and Red Bull Player Michaela “Mimi” Lintrup said: “We learned so much playing in this new format at Red Bull Instalock, how undisciplined people can be when playing something so chaotic. In the chaos, the thing that helped us to secure the win was to chill.”

Red Bull Instalock host Yinsu Collins also commented: “I loved my experience at the first ever Red Bull Instalock! The invited teams were incredibly competitive and tackled the format in a really unique way. Throughout the tournament, as the player’s normal game plan was out the window, we saw a lot of creativity, pros thinking on their feet, adaptation and some new approaches to how the game can be played.”

AGON by AOC, a global leader in gaming monitors, returned to join the Red Bull Gaming universe once again as the official Monitor Partner for Red Bull Instalock. Bringing the event to life and providing cutting-edge hardware for the esports tournament, AGON by AOC equipped the event with the AGON PRO AG254FG monitors, featuring a 360 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms response time for the best in-game experience.

Check out redbull.com/gaming for more information.

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Welcome to our weekly roundup of American gambling news again! Here, we are going through the weekly highlights of the American gambling industry which include the latest news and new partnerships. Read on and get updated.

Latest News

Caesars Entertainment announced that the Caesars Sportsbook Mississippi app is accepting mobile sports bets at Harrah’s Gulf Coast in Biloxi, Mississippi. Sports fans 21 and older who are interested in wagering on sports via mobile devices can download the Caesars Sportsbook Mississippi app to register and deposit statewide but must be physically present on-property at Harrah’s Gulf Coast to wager.

The Office of Lottery and Gaming (OLG) has announced that FanDuel’s sports betting app and website has officially launched. This development will introduce FanDuel’s sports wagering platform to District residents and visitors, completely replacing the current GambetDC sports betting app and website.

eCOGRA has been officially authorised by the Secretaria De Prêmios e Apostas (SPA) to operate as a certifying entity for betting systems, live gaming studios and online games in Brazil. This announcement marks a significant milestone as eCOGRA continues to extend its international offering of iGaming testing, inspection and certification (TIC) services in regulated markets across the globe.

Jennifer Shatley, a recognised expert in the field and a highly sought speaker and advisor, has joined the Responsible Online Gaming Association (ROGA) as Executive Director. Shatley has had 25+ years worth of experience, working closely with the treatment community, academics, researchers, government bodies, state councils and gaming industry representatives to promote responsible gaming.

Odditt, a leading provider of innovative sports betting data, tools and analytics, has appointed Elaine Milardo as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO). With over 25 years of experience in the data industry and key roles at DraftKings and Vistaprint, Elaine brings a wealth of expertise to Odditt’s growing team.

Partnerships

Trustly, the global leader in Open Banking Payments, and Light & Wonder, the leading cross-platform global games company, are bringing cashless, in-person deposits to casino floors with Light & Wonder’s cashless solution, RAPIDPLAY. Building on Trustly’s success with guaranteed payments in online sports betting and iGaming, Trustly will deliver the same seamless, quick and secure online payment experience to the physical casino floor.

Fintech company Sightline has entered into an exclusive partnership with compliance and anti-fraud technology solutions leader GeoComply to bolster the security and efficiency of digital transactions within the regulated gaming industry. Sightline will integrate GeoComply’s cutting-edge IDComply identity verification solution as well as GeoComply’s compliance-grade geolocation tools across its comprehensive suite of digital payment solutions for land-based casinos and online gaming operators.

BetMGM has announced a partnership with GameCode, a distinguished iGaming company focused on the North American market. The partnership includes the launch of Boom Boom Boom, HammerCash, Gold Gold Gold and Super3 series which are now live at BetMGM in Michigan and New Jersey through direct integration. BetMGM plans to offer GameCode’s full portfolio of games in all jurisdictions where the operator’s iGaming platform is live pending regulatory approvals.

SCCG Management has announced a joint venture investment with Numb3rs, an innovative all-in-one payment solution provider built for gaming operators. The partnership aims to transform the gaming sector by integrating Numb3rs’ proprietary tech stack, ECRYPT, into the marketplace, thereby offering a comprehensive suite of payment processing solutions.

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