The Guard Withdraws from 2024 VCT Americas Season
A North American VALORANT team, The Guard, has announced their withdrawal from the upcoming 2024 VCT Americas season. This shocking news comes just days after their victory in the Champions 2023 tournament. The Guard missed the deadline to agree to the Team Participation Agreement, leading to their exclusion from the season.
VALORANT Esports Head Addresses The Guard Controversy
Leo Faria, the global head of VALORANT esports, has responded to the community backlash surrounding The Guard’s withdrawal. In a lengthy statement, Faria provided more information about the issues with The Guard and their VALORANT roster. He also explained why alternative solutions proposed by the community would not be feasible.
“Every team that qualified for Ascension signed the Team Participation Agreement prior to the start of the tournament, and signatures were held in escrow,” Faria stated regarding The Guard. The expectation was that the winning teams in Ascension would release their signatures to finalize their promotion to the international VCT leagues.
The Guard failed to complete this process and did not respond to follow-ups after two months, according to Faria.
Contradicting Statements from The Guard
However, The Guard released a statement expressing their disappointment with the outcome. They claimed to be taken aback by the decision to exclude them from the VCT Americas season.
Calls for Players to Still Compete
Following The Guard’s withdrawal, there has been a call within the VALORANT community to allow the players to continue competing, even under a different organization. Faria explained that since the players were not free agents at the time of the tournament, they cannot join another organization as a “free agent team.” This is to prevent the sale of VCT slots, which is not allowed.
A Riot employee supported this ruling, stating that the company cannot make business decisions on behalf of players. They also mentioned the difficulty in ensuring there was no financial exchange during a migration to another organization.
The decision has left The Guard players and coach without a VCT Americas spot and a team. The players have been permitted to pursue new opportunities, but many are still calling on Riot to make an exception in these unique circumstances and allow the players to participate in VCT Americas.
VALORANT, esports, VCT, The Guard, VCT Americas, controversy, withdrawal, team participation agreement, free agents, Riot