Riot Games Announces New Plans for VALORANT Esports

Riot Games Announces New Plans for VALORANT Esports

Esports Ecosystem to Grow with New Leagues and In-Game Features
In 2023, the new model will form ground-breaking long-term partnerships with select teams.

Riot Games announced today groundbreaking new plans for VALORANT Esports, including the creation of three worldwide leagues as the highest level of play for the 2023 season. The new model will include long-term partnerships with no entrance fees for a restricted number of teams, ensuring the world’s fastest growing esport’s long-term stability. Riot Games will introduce new features and events to support the project, including:

Three new worldwide leagues will feature week-to-week action between the greatest teams from across the world. The greatest players will compete in LAN settings and in front of live audiences in the three international leagues, which are made up of teams from the Americas, Europe, and Asia, respectively (health and safety conditions permitting). The best teams from each league will qualify for two international Masters tournaments and VALORANT Champions throughout the year, with a single team being crowned VALORANT World Champion.
A new competitive in-game mode available to all players directly within the VALORANT client that aims to find the top talent on the planet. This mode will complement the existing leaderboards by giving players a new goal beyond ranked play that is integrated into the esports ecosystem.
A new competitive in-game mode available to all players directly within the VALORANT client that aims to find the top talent on the planet. This mode will complement the existing leaderboards by giving players a new goal beyond ranked play that is integrated into the esports ecosystem.
Riot Games will break new ground in the esports competitive market by waiving all admission and participation fees for a limited group of companies, paving the way for long-term success.

“With VALORANT, we want to build today’s most thrilling esport alongside the most well-managed, ambitious, and exciting teams in the industry. We have designed our long-term partnership model for VALORANT so teams can thrive and build their business alongside the overall growth of VALORANT Esports,” said Whalen Rozelle, Head of Esports Operations at Riot Games. “We are setting up our long-term partners for success by forgoing any entry or participation fees for selected organizations. Our aim is to free our partners to invest their resources in supporting their pros and growing their fanbases through creating incredible content for fans.”

Riot Games will conduct a selective application process throughout 2022 to find the best long-term partners to help VALORANT become the world’s most popular FPS esport. Riot Games will provide financial support in the form of an annual stipend to teams who match the selection criteria, as well as the exclusive opportunity to cooperate on unique in-game activations and products. Partnered teams will be able to disseminate branded esports material, allowing VALORANT’s 15 million monthly gamers to display their esports enthusiasm while watching and participating.

“Together, all these elements will contribute to a competitive ecosystem that will position VALORANT for its next stage of growth,” said John Needham, President of Esports at Riot Games. “We want to build the top level of competition that will provide more exciting matches, new events that will thrill live audiences, and engaging experiences for millions of online fans. We’ll use everything we learned from the past 10 years with LoL Esports to build an ecosystem that will supercharge VALORANT into the next great multigenerational esport.”

Riot Games was the first video game publisher to announce a long-term agreement with League of Legends Esports back in 2017. (LoL Esports). This strategy established a formal relationship between Riot Games and teams, allowing everyone to invest in a common long-term vision. This approach has been used by leagues in North America, Europe, China, Latin America, Korea, Brazil, Turkey, and throughout the esports sector since 2017. Larger pay and more sophisticated support systems have benefited players, while clubs have been able to plan several years ahead.

Permanent partnership spaces within the Riot Games ecosystem have become more valuable, attracting talent from both the esports and traditional sports industries. Close collaboration on ambitious events, digital experiences, and producing a genuinely engaged esports experience has been enabled by a formal connection with teams.