- The tournament will start in February and feature 30 international teams
- It will take place in lieu of the first split of 2023
- The rest of the VCT will be centered around three regions – EMEA, PACIFIC, and Americas
Riot Games revealed more information about next year’s VALORANT Champions Tour, which will start with a kickoff event in São Paulo, Brazil.
São Paulo to Host the Kickoff Event
The end of this year’s VALORANT Champions is nearing, but before the winner of this year is even proclaimed, Riot is already making preparations for the next season. In addition to announcing several big changes coming to the game’s most popular agents, the company has revealed the starting point of 2023’s VALORANT Champions Tour – São Paulo, Brazil.
“VALORANT’s growth in every corner of the world continues to push us to dream big and today we want to share more on our plans for the future of the sport,” wrote Riot in the official announcement. COO, Esports at Riot Games Whalen Rozelle added in a press release that the company was inspired by its community’s passion to evolve the VALORANT Champions Tour to meet the growing demand for the sport. “In 2023, we’re taking everything we’ve learned, adding in new ideas, and forming partnerships that will help us realize our dreams for the next edition of the VCT.”
What Else Did Riot Reveal
Lasting for three weeks between February and March, and featuring 30 teams, the São Paulo tournament will be one of the biggest VALORANT tournaments ever. It will take place in lieu of the first split of 2023 and will see many international teams duke it out for a chance to earn their region an extra slot at Masters.
In addition to announcing the São Paulo kickoff event, Riot also showed details about the format and schedule of the new international leagues. 2023’s VCT system will revolve around three leagues: EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), PACIFIC, and Americas. Three cities will host in-person matches – Berlin, Seoul, and Los Angeles for the three different leagues, respectively.
The only split of the international leagues for the VCT 2023 will begin in March and will end in May, spanning eight weeks of the regular season. Future seasons will have a second split but the international tournament in Sao Paulo is a stand-in to allow time for set-up in the three international league hub cities.
The Masters event in June will host the best teams from each league. The top teams from that event will qualify directly to Champions 2023, while other teams will have the chance to reach Champions through the Last Chance Qualifiers in July. There will be three LCQs, each producing just one winner that will qualify for Champions, which will start in August next year.
