The highest level of European VALORANT competition will feature directly invited teams in the closed qualifier. Riot Games unveiled all eight invited teams through its social media channels.
What’s next for VCT Europe?
The sixteen-team closed qualifier of the VALORANT Champions Tour will feature eight invited teams and eight other teams that qualified from the open qualifiers. All participants will compete with each other to earn a place in the main event, which will be held on July 7. The invited teams for VCT Europe Stage Challengers 1 are:
- Fnatic
- Team Liquid
- FunPlus Phoenix
- Acend
- Guild Esports
- Ninjas in Pyjamas
- Team BDS
- Team Vitality
The teams grabbed the tickets thanks to their performances in previous stages. Last EMEA champion Team Liquid and the second place of Masters Reykjavik, Fnatic, will lead other teams in the closed qualifier.
VCT 2021: Europe Stage 3 Week 1 format changes
VALORANT Champions Tour Europe Stage 3 Week 1 will be played on Patch 3.0 and this makes the tournament unpredictable. The new update brings many changes to the game and teams have too little time to prepare for it. The lack of preparation time with the new meta primes this competition for some spicy games and shock results.If any team makes a surprise, this will be the best tournament. Teams like G2 Esports, Heretics and Alliance, who had failed to qualify in the previous stages, can spring a surprise this time if they adapt to the new meta quickly, potentially securing a place in the finals via the open qualification rounds.
Another change in the tournament structure is the new lower bracket system. Stage 2 featured a single bracket format and it was criticized by the majority of the community for it, including professional players. The single bracket format is notoriously harsh, as one bad game can eliminate a team from the competition earlier than expected. This is particularly rough if two top teams meet early on in the bracket. In addition, Stage 3’s closed beta is expected to be played as best-of-threes.
VCT 2021: Europe Stage 3 Challengers 1 begins on June 28 with the open qualifier.
