Riot Games has revealed new plans for the Esports of the Valorantincluding three continental leagues that will represent the highest level of the competitive landscape in the 2023 season.
The new model is intended to incorporate long-term partnerships with no entry fees for a select number of teams. The objective is to ensure the stability of the fastest growing esport in the world, according to a company statement. To support this initiative, Riot Games will be releasing new features and events.
Three new continental leagues will feature weekly matches between the best teams in the world. In the three continental leagues, composed respectively of teams from the Americas, Europe and Asia, the best players will face each other in face-to-face events with an audience (if health and safety conditions permit at the time of the events).
Throughout the year, the best teams from each league qualify for two international Masters competitions and for the Valorant Champions, an event that will crown a single team as Valorant World Champion.
A new competitive mode accessible to all players directly in the VALORANT client and designed to identify the best talent around the world. This mode works as an addition to the existing Leaderboard, giving players new goals above ranked.
The launch of the new domestic leagues, which will provide more opportunities for new talent to reach the continental leagues. The best teams from the competitive mode present in the client will have the opportunity to compete against the best talent from their regions in their respective domestic leagues.
Fade, Valorant agent – (Image: Playback/Twitter)
Esports Valorant will have fee waivers for some organizations
Riot Games will break new ground in the competitive Esports landscape by waiving registration or participation fees for some organizations, thus forging lasting partnerships.
“We want to make Valorant the most exciting esport today alongside the most ambitious, innovative and well-managed teams in the industry. We designed our long-term partnership model to grow our partners’ businesses in parallel with the growth of Valorant Esports,” said Whalen Rozelle, Esports Operations Leader at Riot Games. “We want to forge successful long-term partnerships and, to achieve this, we will exempt some organizations from any application or participation fees. The goal is to enable our partners to invest their resources in supporting their professionals and grow their fan base by creating quality content for fans.”
Throughout 2022, Riot Games intends to conduct a selective application process in order to identify the best long-term partnerships that will help transform Valorant Esport. Teams that meet the selection criteria will receive financial support from Riot Games through an annual grant and the exclusive opportunity to collaborate on exclusive in-game products and actions. Partner teams will also be able to distribute branded Esports content, allowing Valorant’s current 15 million monthly players to show their support as they watch and play.
Image: Twitter/DannyINTEL
“Together, all of these elements will contribute to a competitive ecosystem that will take Valorant to its next stage of growth,” said John Needham, President of Esports at Riot Games. “We want to build the highest level of competition, with exciting matches, new events to excite in-person audiences and compelling experiences for millions of online fans. We will use everything we’ve learned from LoL esports over the past 10 years to create an ecosystem that will transform Valorant into the next great multi-generational esports.”
In 2017, Riot Games was the first game publisher to introduce a permanent partnership with League of Legends Esports (LoL Esports). This business model created a formal partnership between the teams and Riot Games, allowing everyone to invest to achieve a unified long-term vision. Since 2017, this model has been adopted by leagues in North America, Europe, China, Latin America, Korea, Brazil, Turkey, and across the Esports industry. With this initiative, players were able to earn higher salaries and have stronger support systems, while teams were able to create more plans for the future.
The permanent partnerships of the Riot Games ecosystem have also gained value, attracting a variety of talent — both from esports and traditional sports. This formal relationship between the company and the teams has allowed for close collaboration on ambitious events, digital experiences and creating a truly immersive esports experience.
After a Closed Beta that reached the incredible mark of 1.7 million concurrent viewers on Twitch, Valorant quickly became the fastest growing Esport in 2020. To support the competitive landscape, Riot Games launched Valorant Champions Tour, a global circuit with a duration of one year that has three competitive levels: Challengers, Masters and Champions. Teams compete in regional Challengers level events and qualify for international Masters events with the goal of earning a spot in Champions, a two-week championship where one team is crowned Valorant World Champion. This season-long global contest will feature competitions in North America, South America, Europe and Asia.
