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2023 VCT Season Format, Kickoff Tournament Announced

By Ralston Dacanay

"Welcome to a whole new VCT."
"Welcome to a whole new VCT." / Image courtesy of Riot Games

Riot Games announced its 2023 Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) Format on Wednesday, confirming plenty of recent reports and expanding upon its initial preview from April.

From the Kickoff Tournament to the International League sites, here's a breakdown of everything you need to know about the 2023 VCT Format.

"The Valorant community’s passion inspired us to dream big and evolve the VALORANT Champions Tour to meet the overwhelming demand we’re seeing in every corner of the world," said Whalen Rozelle, COO, Esports at Riot Games. "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."

As discussed earlier, the 2023 VCT season will be headlined by the formation of three, 10-team partnered International Leagues that provide each region the chance to qualify for global events.

Although the selected organizations are reportedly going to be revealed shortly after the conclusion of Valorant Champions 2022, Riot has officially revealed the names and locations of where the three leagues will host LAN matches in front of live audiences, week in and week out:

  • VCT Americas League: Los Angeles, United States
  • VCT EMEA League: Berlin, Germany
  • VCT Pacific League: Seoul, South Korea
2023 VCT International Leagues
2023 VCT International Leagues / Image courtesy of Riot Games

Starting in 2024 each International League season will feature two splits. For 2023, however, a single split will be supplemented with the VCT's largest international tournament ever.

To celebrate the start of the new season, every team selected for partnership will be invited to Sao Paulo, Brazil in February. During the one-time, three-week tournament, a first look will be given at all of the new rosters. Additionally, the team who places first will earn their league an extra slot in June at the second international event of the year and first of the VCT season, Masters 2023.

The first competitive split of the year for the International Leagues will begin in March, featuring eight weeks of regular-season competition before the three league champions are crowned in May.

July will see the return of the Last Chance Qualifiers, where the top-performing teams who have not yet qualified for Champions will get one last shot to earn an invitation to the most important event of the season. Each of the three LCQs will advance one team into Champions. The 2023 VCT season will conclude with Champions in August.

2023 VCT Schedule
2023 VCT Schedule / Image courtesy of Riot Games

Lastly, Riot Games also shared new details about the Challenger Circuit, which will take place concurrently with the VCT season, providing aspiring teams with a path to qualify for international competition for the 2024 season.

Two Challenger splits will begin in January and conclude with the three regional Ascension tournaments in July. These tournaments will feature the best teams from more than 20 different Challenger leagues competing on LAN for promotion into the international leagues.

2023 VCT Challenger Promotion Path
2023 VCT Challenger Promotion Path / Image courtesy of Riot Games

For more 2022 VCT coverage, feel free to check out:

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