With the announcement of the 30 teams that will compete in the three VCT 2023 leagues, Riot Games put an end to the rumours circulating online about which teams would be partnered. Riot Games has begun a rigorous selection process to determine which companies will be the league’s official sponsors. As of the 2023 VCT season, the Champions Tour will include additional events, giving players and fans more chances to see their favourite regional and international rivalries. Many well-known companies, contrary to rumours and leaks to the contrary, apparently did not make the final cut.
The Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), and the Pacific are the three leagues that make up the circuit. At the beginning of the upcoming season, all 30 affiliated teams will travel to Sao Paulo, Brazil to participate in a LAN tournament lasting three weeks and featuring high-stakes competition.
Teams forming partnerships and the VCT 2023 selection procedure
According to Riot Games, the VCT 2023 season’s selection process was extremely competitive and took several months to complete. The process involved filling out paperwork, having in-person meetings, and reviewing bank statements. Furthermore, the company stressed that it was not particularly interested in past competitive performance when selecting a business partner.
Americas
Teams from North America (NA), South America (SA), and Brazil (BR) make up the Americas League (LATAM). Five were reserved for North America, with the remaining five being divided between Asia and Europe. These groups have established records of success in the esports industry and have amassed dedicated fan bases for their respective brands. Riot said of the Americas league’s representative teams, “Within each region of origin, fans recognise these teams for the storylines they foster and their ability to bridge esports and the broader gaming culture.”
These are the qualifying squads:
- 100 Robbers (100T)
- Cloud9 (C9) (C9)
- Clever Villains (EG)
- NRG
- Sentinels (SEN) (SEN)
- eSports KRÜ (KRU)
- FURIA (FUR) (FUR)
- LOUD
- Leviatán (LEV) (LEV)
- MIBR
EMEA
Riot Games recognised that EMEA is enormous and has a fantastic history of first-person shooters. “Our mission is to foster regional rivalries that will increase VALORANT’s fan base over time by means of high-stakes competition.”
These are the ten EMEA squads:
- Fnatic (FNC) (FNC)
- Constantly Liquid (TL)
- Strong Team (VIT)
- Business Firm Karmine (KCorp)
- Giants (GIA) (GIA)
- The Heresy Squad (HER)
- eSports Fut (FUT)
- NAVI
- eSports League BBL
- KOI
Pacific
Teams from East Asia, South Asia, and the Asia-Pacific region will all be able to participate in the VCT Pacific region (EA). There are some well-known names in this league. Riot guaranteed that the teams’ diverse composition accurately reflected the region’s rich cultural tapestry.
Here are the ten squads:
- Dinosaur on paper (PRX)
- Division ZETA (ZETA)
- Explosive Video Games
- T1
- Gen.G (GEN) (GEN)
- DRX
- Team Confidentiality (TS)
- Aesports Team Talon
- King of the Realm, Queen of the Realm (RRQ)
- World-Wide eSports (GE)
The EMEA league’s hub will be in Berlin, the Pacific league’s in Seoul, and the Americas league’s studio will be in Los Angeles.
Several teams have already begun restocking their Valorant rosters for the upcoming VCT 2023 season. Many were surprised when teams like G2 Esports, OpTic Gaming, Team SoloMid (TSM), and FunPlus Phoenix (FPX) were left out of the franchising.