Valorant gets its biggest VCT shake-up ever, and it could be the best thing to happen to it

Riot Games has unveiled its bold new vision for the Valorant Champions Tour in 2027, and it looks like the developer-publisher has looked to the past for inspiration. The new format will throw the doors open to teams across the globe once more, removing the current league system in favor of a good ol' fashioned regional free-for-all to decide who gets to go to Masters, and subsequently Champions. "Everything is a tournament" now, and the stakes have never been higher.

Under the proposed format, the Valorant Champions Tour will move back to something similar to the open qualifier format utilized prior to the introduction of regional leagues in 2023. The tier system is no more, replaced with more regular regional tourneys called 'VCT Cups' that teams of every level will strive to compete in. Winning cups now dictates who makes it onto the plane to international events; silverware breeds silverware. Riot says more than 20 tournaments for the FPS game will take place across 16 cities worldwide each year, offering more chances than ever for prospective pros to make a name for themselves. With an expanded prize pool of over $6 million per year on the line, Riot isn't playing around.

Though the tier system is gone, partnered teams will persist, albeit with changes. Going forward, partnership now operates on a two-year cycle. Partnered teams will still receive plenty of boons, including direct financial support, Team Capsules, and direct seeding into later stages of tournament qualification, but the hegemony of the VCT league stalwarts is now somewhat in flux.

While the existing VCT format has brought a sense of stability to the ecosystem, it's done so at the expense of emerging narratives; the underdog stories that we regale years after the fact. The addition of Ascension last year brought fresh blood into the regional leagues, with VCT Masters Santiago winner Nongshim RedForce being the most notable beneficiary of the promotion system. Though the dust has only just settled from March's final, Nongshim's run is already legendary in my books.

These are the sorts of stories that Riot needs to continue facilitating, but even more so it needs this structural loosening to really unearth the diamonds in the rough: the organization-less teams that make miracle runs to the very top. Jake 'Boaster' Howlett may now be the glue that keeps Fnatic together, but before he put on the K-Pop dancing shoes he, alongside the SUMN FC boys, was taking Team Liquid to five maps at Red Bull Homeground. Removing VCT's rigidity is, in my opinion, the best thing Riot can do to improve competitiveness. If partnered teams are good enough, you can bet you'll still see them at global events. But, if their standards slip, there will always be a Sage Ult My Nan Football Club ready to take their place.

As Leo Faria says in a presser accompanying the announcement: "By shifting to a tournament-driven system with open access to our biggest events, we're creating a more dynamic, high-stakes ecosystem where every match matters and every team has a shot at the global stage." The revamped VCT sounds like a huge logistical undertaking, so I can definitely foresee there being a few teething issues. That being said, if everything plays out as intended, an exciting new chapter is about to unfold for Valorant esports.