Riot Games Unveils Five-Year Plan for VALORANT Competitive Scene
Riot Games has revealed a comprehensive five-year plan for the competitive scene of VALORANT. This plan includes the outlook for 2023 and beyond for teams that do not qualify for the partnership program. Fans now have an understanding of what the next five years will bring for the VCT ecosystem.
Due to the introduction of the partnered league, teams that do not achieve partnership status in 2023 will have a revamped path-to-pro. Players aspiring to reach the top tier of competitive VALORANT will face a longer and more challenging climb to reach their goals.
Fortunately, starting in 2023, aspiring players will have a clear path to follow. The VALORANT Champions Tour will continue with regional Challengers events, which serve as the stepping stone for up-and-coming talent aiming to compete in international tournament leagues.
In 2023, more regions will have the opportunity to participate in Challengers, which will remain the starting point for competitive VALORANT. The upcoming year will bring larger events, new tournaments, and a more structured competitive ecosystem for the game.
New and Expanded Challengers Leagues
Challengers, currently the entry point for VCT in 2022, will continue to be the entry point for global events for organized teams. Challengers leagues will begin with an open qualifier and will feature two splits of regular season play spread over multiple weeks.
Each Challengers split will culminate in a playoff tournament to determine the winner. The major Challengers leagues will have dedicated broadcast windows that will not clash with international league matches.
Twenty-one Challengers leagues will take place worldwide, including four in the Americas, seven in EMEA, and 10 in APAC.
A New League – Challengers Ascension
A new level of competition called Challengers Ascension will be introduced. This tournament will feature three Ascension leagues: EMEA, Americas, and Pacific. The Challengers leagues will lead up to the Ascension league, where the top teams from each region will compete to crown the best team in their territory.
In each region, the winner of the 2023 Challenger Ascension tournament will earn a spot in the international league for the following year. This means that they will compete in the international league in 2024.
In 2023, the international league will consist of 10 teams from each region. Challengers and Ascension leagues will earn their place in the international roster of teams through intense competition.
Challengers Promotion for VALORANT Esports
The 10 partnered teams in each region will not be eliminated from the international league, and the leagues will grow gradually as outlined in Riot’s five-year plan. This expansion will not impact teams competing in 2023.
Teams participating in Challengers and Ascension tournaments in 2023 will not compete in the international league that year. They will be competing to earn a spot for 2024. The teams that secure that spot will have two years to compete in the international league before returning to the Challengers circuit.
This means that there will be no additional teams in the 2023 season of VCT. The stakes will be high for the teams vying for the new VALORANT path-to-pro. Each region will only have one new spot in the 2024 season, requiring teams to battle through numerous matches to secure victory and participation in the international league.
2023 International League with 10 Teams
The 2023 international season will see 10 teams from each of the three regions competing to be the best in the world. These leagues will be similar to the Masters and Champions events, with the inclusion of the 10 partnered teams instead of open qualifiers.
The teams that will compete in the international league in 2023 have not been announced, but Riot has completed its final interviews and received over 150 proposals from teams vying for a spot in the inaugural season.
The international league is set to begin in mid-February 2023 and conclude in September. Partnered teams will receive a stipend, the amount of which will depend on content deliverables.
Participating VCT 2023 Teams
Here is the complete list of teams for each partnered league:
- EMEA: KOI, Karmine Corp, Fnatic, Team Vitality, Natus Vincere, Team Liquid, Heretics, BBL Esports, Giants, FUT Esports
- Americas: Cloud9, Sentinels, NRG, KRÜ, Leviatán, LOUD, FURIA, MIBR, 100T, Evil Geniuses
- Asia: ZETA DIVISION, DetonatioN Gaming, Gen.G, T1, DRX, Team Secret, Paper Rex, Rex Regum Qeon, Talon Esports, Global Esports
Kick-off Tournament in Brazil
The start of the 2023 international season will feature a three-week kick-off tournament in São Paulo, Brazil, with all 30 teams participating. This tournament will replace the first split of the VCT year and will resume as the kick-off tournament in 2024.
The winner of the 2023 kick-off tournament will earn an additional spot for their international league at the next Masters, as well as a trophy and cash prize.
More details about the 2023 season and the Game Changers tournaments will be announced closer to the end of the year, likely around the time of the Champions tournament in September.