VCT Stage 3 — Challengers North America Primer

By winning Masters: Reykjavik, Sentinels put the rest of the VALORANT Champions Tour on notice: North America is a force to be reckoned with. Now, the champions of Iceland must fight to defend their crown amid a loaded region, packed with NA teams eager to show their quality on the international stage. The road to Berlin is long, and time is short.

Here’s everything you need to know about the 2021 VCT Stage 3 — Challengers North America:

Stage Overview

The VALORANT Champions Tour is a year-long global circuit featuring three tiers of competition (Challengers, Masters, and Champions) across North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. The VCT consists of three stages, the first two of which have been completed by each region. We are now entering VCT Stage 3, which will conclude during September’s international VCT Stage 3 — Masters tournament held in Berlin, Germany.

North American teams will begin their journey to VCT Masters 3 through Challengers Weeks 1 and 2. Each Challengers tournament will consist of an Open Qualifier and Main Event. For Challengers Week 1, the top eight teams from the 120-team Open Qualifiers will advance to the Main Event. Sentinels and Version1 have been given byes until the Challengers Week 1 Open Qualifiers Round of 32. Of the eight teams at the Challengers Week 1 Main Event, the top four will be seeded into the Challengers Playoffs, and the bottom four will receive direct invites to the Challengers Week 2 Main Event. They will be joined by the top four teams from the 128-team Challengers Week 2 Open Qualifiers. The top four teams from the Challengers Week 2 Main Event will advance to the Challengers Playoffs. The champion, runner up and third place team of the Challengers Playoffs will represent North America at VCT Stage 3 — Masters in Berlin.

Both Challengers Open Qualifiers will be single elimination tournaments featuring best-of-three matches. Challengers Main Events and Challengers Playoffs will be double elimination tournaments with best-of-three matches, transitioning to best-of-fives for each grand final.

New Elements: Breeze and KAY/O

Stage 3 adds Breeze to the official competitive map pool, and it will be available during the Challengers Week 1 Open Qualifiers. With the introduction of a sixth map, the map pick/ban process has been adjusted across best-of-one, best-of-three and best-of-five formats. You can view the updated rules in section 7.6 of the VCT Global Competition Policy.

And per rule 7.4.1 of the VCT Global Competition Policy, newly released agent KAY/O will be available for VCT NA play beginning with the Challengers Week 2 Open Qualifiers.

Broadcast Schedule

Check out @valesports_NA for regular updates and nerdstgamers.com/riot for more info. And, to catch up on all the latest action, standings, and best plays from the VCT, make sure to check out The Headshot on YouTube!

Current VCT North America Point Standings

We’re proud to continue working with three fantastic sponsors throughout VCT Stage 3 - Challengers North America: Aimlab, Credit Karma Money, and Verizon.

Aim Lab is the official training partner of VCT, helping develop existing VALORANT pros and players trying to break into the professional scene with a variety of innovative training programs and custom insights.

Credit Karma Money is the official fintech partner of VCT, presenting the “Instant Karma” moment during the match. “Instant Karma” moments highlight particularly selfless displays of teamwork that affect the match in a positive way.

Verizon is the official 5G and wireless services provider of the VCT. In addition to top-shelf video content and sponsored broadcast segments, Verizon ups our game through the Verizon Up rewards program, which features discounted in-game digital goods for the community to enjoy.

Broadcast Talent

We’ll release the official lineup of hosts, casters and analysts as we get closer to the Week 1 Open Qualifiers!

Competitive Policies & Rules for VALORANT Esports

You can find the official ruleset for VALORANT esports here.