Valorant Esport Will Be Inspired By League Of Legends In 2023

While we have only completed the first of three stages of the 2022 VCT, Riot Games has officially shared its plans for Valorant and its esport in 2023. The circuit will change, especially in form, to get closer to what the company has been used to with League of Legends.

Three weekly leagues, in LAN

For the time being, the road to the Valorant World Championships starts with qualifying for Challengers tournaments in 11 regions of the world. The biggest change in 2023 will be the introduction of three main leagues EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa), NA (North America) and Asia. They do not replace the Challengers or the Game Changers, but rather act as an intermediate stage until the Masters.

Each of these leagues will see a defined number of teams competing in a weekly and in LAN. The best teams from each region will then be able to qualify for international tournaments and compete against each other, similar to the current Masters. Both types of tournaments will provide points towards qualification for the World Championships.

Team selection

The various teams participating in these leagues will be selected by Riot Games and will become official partners. As such, they will be paid and accompanied in order to be able to dedicate itself exclusively to Valorant and its esport. We don't know yet how many teams will be able to join this league.

This format is reminiscent of the LEC and LCS in League of Legends. It should allow for more stability in the Valorant scene, as well as more regular matches for spectators and fans. But depending on the pace of the competition, it could also close the circuit to teams lacking in resources, in favour of larger structures.

Valorant esport on a smaller scale

As mentioned earlier, these changes do not invalidate either the Valorant Challengers or the Game Changers. Regional and national competitions will continue to exist, especially in regions where the three new leagues do not operate.

To help spot talent at the root, even before the Challengers, a new competitive game mode will be added directly into Valorant next year. This will allow teams that are not part of the competitive circuit to compete and earn points to stand out. The best teams will then be able to compete against teams from the Challengers or the new Riot Games leagues and perhaps advance to the next level.

There is still a lot of uncertainty about the new format and leagues. We don't know their names, and it's probably too early to define the number of slots available or the pace of the competitions themselves. But there's time to see what happens, as it won't happen until 2023.