VALORANT Champions 2022 begins group stage
The 2022 VALORANT Champions began its Group Stage on Wednesday, August 31. It will last until September 18, and the tournament will conclude with a grand final on September 18. Riot Games is holding the event after previously organizing two Masters earlier this year.
This year’s VCT will feature some of the world’s best esports teams, seeded straight from regional circuits. The championship comprises teams from North America, South America, LATAM, EMEA, APAC, Japan, and Korea, who won their respective regional tournaments.
VCT 2022: Stages, format
The 16 teams participating in the 2022 VCT are separated into four groups, each comprising four teams. The first stage employs a double-elimination format, and games are played in a best-of-three. Two best-performing teams from each group will qualify for the playoffs, set to begin on September 9-18.
In the playoffs, eight teams will compete in a double-elimination bracket. All games are played in a best-of-three format, except for the grand final and the lower bracket final, which will be played in a best-of-five format. The prize pool of the tournament has yet to be released.
Leading to VCT 2022, teams from LATAM, Brazil, Oceania, South Asia, Japan, Korea, and China had to compete in region-specific Last Chance Qualifiers to claim the last six slots in the tournament.
There are ten teams taken straight from Circuit Point standings. Meaning that these teams racked up the highest points in their respective regions. Details of these teams qualified for VCT alongside slot allocation are as follows:
NA: two slots (OpTic Gaming, XSET)
EMEA: two slots (FunPlus Phoenix, Fnatic)
Brazil: one slot (LOUD)
LATAM: one slot (Leviatán)
Japan: one slot (ZETA DIVISION)
APAC: two slots (Paper Rex)
Korea: one slot (DRX)
Meanwhile, as mentioned above, the remaining six teams were seeded from regional LCQs. These events provided the final entry to make it into Champions after teams failed to accumulate higher Circuit Points. Details of these teams are provided below:
NA: one slot (100 Thieves)
EMEA: one slot (Team Liquid)
SA: two slots (KRÜ Esports)
EA: one slot (EDward Gaming)
APAC: one slot (BOOM Esports)
Group Stage so far
Actions in the Group Stage so far came from teams in Group A. Paper Rex and Leviatán are leading the standings after victories over EDward Gaming and Team Liquid. The two teams are scheduled for the winner’s matchup this Thursday, while the losers will play in the elimination game this Saturday.
The three other groups will begin playing this week, starting from Group B’s OpTic Gaming vs. BOOM Esports and ZETA DIVISION vs. LOUD. Group C will follow suit with FunPlus Phoenix vs. KRÜ Esports and XERXIA vs. XSET. Lastly, Group D’s DRX will play FURIA Esports, while Fnatic against 100 Thieves.
VCT 2022 is held in Istanbul, Turkey. Riot earlier announced that the playoffs would feature a live audience.
“Our goal is to see our biggest international events played in front of a live audience and both of these cities provided clear pathways towards this goal, while also providing the best possible guarantee that all qualified teams will be able to safely attend and compete,” Riot said
