Riot sets VCT 2027 calendar with 15 host cities

Riot Games has announced the 2027 VALORANT Champions Tour calendar and a new format called The Global Tour. The season will replace fixed regional leagues with tournaments across 14 territories and 15 host cities.

The first Kickoff events will begin on Jan. 14, 2027, in São Paulo, Berlin, Bangkok and Hangzhou. They will run through Feb. 7. The leading teams will qualify for Masters Seoul in South Korea, scheduled for Feb. 20 to March 3.

Open qualifiers for the first Kickoff events are due to start in November 2026, after the current season ends. The qualifiers will give independent and non-partnered teams a route into the main competition. Partnered teams will receive advanced seeding and enter the qualifiers at later stages.

Regional Cups will replace the long regular-season league schedule. The first Cup window will run from April 29 to May 23 in Mexico City, Warsaw, Manila and Wuhan. Results from those events will determine qualification for Masters Valencia in Spain, scheduled for June 5 to June 20.

The second Cup window will take place from Aug. 5 to Aug. 29 in Rio de Janeiro, Istanbul, Tokyo and Shanghai. Those events will provide qualification routes to Champions in Austin, Texas, which will run from Sept. 16 to Oct. 10. The VALORANT Champions and Game Changers Championship finals will share the event.

After Kickoff, partnered teams will have to earn their positions through tournament results. Riot has not announced the teams that will join the partnership program for the 2027-28 cycle.

Riot will provide fixed qualification payments to independent organizations. A non-partnered team that qualifies for a Kickoff or regional Cup will receive $100,000. Qualification for a Masters event will pay $200,000, while reaching Champions will pay $400,000. Riot expects the system to distribute tens of millions of dollars through qualification payments, digital team bundles and a direct tournament prize pool of more than $7 million.

Non-partnered teams that keep at least three players from a five-player roster will retain their circuit points during the season. The rule will apply when teams make limited roster changes.

The Game Changers circuit will receive $1 million in dedicated financial support in 2027. Riot will also release digital team capsules for the season, with the Ghost replacing the Classic as the featured sidearm in the esports bundle.

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