Riot Games has announced major updates for the VALORANT Champions Tour 2026, featuring expanded live events, fresh teams, and a revamped system allowing Challenger squads direct entry to Champions contention. The season kicks off in January with triple-elimination Kickoffs across regions and culminates at Champions Shanghai in September-October, promising higher stakes and more international action.
VCT 2026 Season: New Teams Join International Leagues
Four newly ascended teams—ENVY, PCIFIC, ULF, and SLT Seongnam—enter the VCT alongside returning qualifiers Nongshim Redforce and Dragon Ranger Gaming. These additions deepen regional competition, with ENVY representing Americas, PCIFIC from EMEA, and SLT Seongnam plus Nongshim strengthening Pacific. All will vie for Championship Points toward spots at the year-end showcase in Shanghai.
Revamped Kickoff and VALORANT Masters Events
Kickoff introduces a triple-elimination format for 12 teams per league, starting January 15 (Americas), January 20 (EMEA), and January 22 (Pacific/CN), with top Champions 2025 finishers earning byes. The top three advance to the expanded 12-team Masters Santiago (Feb 28-Mar 15), followed by Masters London (Jun 6-21) using a similar structure. Tickets for Santiago are now available, heightening early-season excitement.
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Stage Formats and Playoff Shifts
Post-Masters Santiago, Stage 1 (Mar 31-May 24) divides 12 teams into two round-robin groups of six, with Bo3 matches; bottom two per group exit early, top four reach playoffs, and top three qualify for London. Stage 2 (Jun 30-Aug 16) hosts league playoffs as live roadshows in new cities, serving as the final qualification push before Season Finals (Aug 5-Sep 6). Championship Points from these stages, refreshed for 2026, decide direct Champions berths alongside playoff winners.
Challengers’ Direct Path to Champions
Ascension ends, replaced by a “Path to Champions” where four Challenger teams per region enter Stage 2 Playoffs against International League squads, earning $75k stipends for logistics. Americas slots go to top NA/Brazil teams plus LATAM/Last Chance winners; EMEA uses points; Pacific favors SEA/Japan/Korea tops with a qualifier; CN details pending. Exemptions allow 16+ players and two imports for Path events (18+ in CN), promoting meritocracy while Academy teams stay regional.
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