VCT 2023 schedule, structure and location revealed

The Valorant Champions Tour schedule, format, and location for the 2023 season have been announced by Riot Games. As Riot Games transitions the top-tier Valorant esports to a partnered league in 2023, the VCT will undergo a significant change.

Riot Games will be bringing all of its teams to Brazil for the Valorant Champions 2023 Kickoff Tourna, its biggest tournament to date, to mark the launch of the competitive Valorant’s partnered league. Here’s all you need to know about the Valorant esports ecosystem, which will undergo a lot of change over the course of the upcoming year.

VCT International Schedule

Traditionally, the first split will start in February, and the second will start in March or April. Riot will sacrifice the first split in 2023 to hold a massive kick-off tournament in São Paulo, Brazil, featuring all partnered teams. The Kickoff tournament will replace the first split entirely as well as Masters Stage 1 in VCT 2023. The winning team will receive a bonus spot at the season’s first Master event for their regional league.

However, the Kick-off event will be a one-time event, only for VCT 2023 and the leagues will return to a double split format in 2024. As the International Splits begin in March, three different leagues will be hosted in Los Angeles, Berlin, and Seoul for the Americas, EMEA, and Pacific areas, respectively.

VCT Masters, Last chance qualifiers and Valorant Champions 2023

After eight weeks of pro play, the top teams will make it to the second international tournament of 2023, VCT Masters. The top-performing team from each region will receive direct entry to the Champions event in August, while the top teams that did not previously qualify must compete in the Last Chance Qualifiers in July. In their individual LCQ tournaments, each league will receive one spot for the Champions event. Subsequently, the Valorant Champions 2023 will start in August and its conclusion will signal the end of the 2023 campaign.

•  Kickoff Tournament: February 14 – March 5

•  International League Split: March 16 – May 28

• Valorant Masters 2023: June

• Last Chance Qualifiers: July

• Valorant Champions: August

2023 VCT Challengers Circuit and Ascension tournament

However, teams that may not get selected to partner with Riot will have to play in Challengers, a Tier-2 event that comes after the international leagues. Challengers event will begin earlier than the kick-off tournament in 2023, with the first split starting in January and the second in March. In 2024, however, the Challengers circuit will run parallel to the two regional splits. The top team from each region’s Tier 2 circuit will advance into their respective region’s international league for the following two years.

• January – March: Challengers Split 1

• March-May: Challengers Split 2

• July: Ascension Tournament

Header: Riot Games