Valorant’s Competitive Circuit: A Comprehensive Guide

Valorant, developed by Riot Games, has rapidly become a major player in the eSports scene. Its competitive structure includes regional leagues, international tournaments, and the Valorant Champions Tour (VCT). Here’s a detailed look at how Valorant’s championships work.

Regional Leagues

The competitive journey in Valorant begins with regional leagues that feed into the international circuit.

• Challengers: These regional events serve as qualifiers for international tournaments. Teams compete in a series of matches to earn points and rankings.
• Regular Season: During the regular season, teams accumulate points based on their performance. The top teams from each region advance to the playoffs.
• Playoffs: The playoffs determine which teams qualify for the next stage of the VCT.

Valorant Champions Tour (VCT)

The VCT is the main competitive circuit for Valorant, consisting of three stages: Challengers, Masters, and Champions.

• Challengers: Regional Challenger events occur in multiple stages, providing teams with opportunities to qualify for the Masters events. Success in Challengers earns teams points and spots in Masters.
• Masters: The Masters tournaments are international events where the best teams from each region compete. These tournaments offer significant prize pools and points towards qualification for the Champions event.
• Champions: The Champions event is the culmination of the VCT season, featuring the top teams from the Masters events. This is the most prestigious tournament in Valorant, crowning the global champion.

Champions Event

The Valorant Champions event is the climax of the competitive season, bringing together the best teams from around the world.

• Qualification: Teams qualify for the Champions event based on their performance in the VCT circuit, particularly their results in the Masters tournaments.
• Group Stage: The event starts with a group stage, where teams are divided into groups and compete in a round-robin format.
• Knockout Stage: The top teams from the group stage advance to the knockout stage, which is a single-elimination bracket. Matches are typically best-of-three or best-of-five, with the final determining the world champion.

Conclusion

Valorant’s competitive structure is designed to provide a clear and exciting pathway from regional leagues to the global stage. With the Valorant Champions Tour, Riot Games has created a dynamic and engaging eSports environment that continues to grow in popularity and prestige.