Riot Games has announced that it is shaking up the competitive formula for Valorant esports in 2023. The developer has revealed that it will be launching three international leagues next year, and that each league will operate similarly to its League of Legends leagues and will see partnered teams making up the list of competitors, who will be taking on each other on a weekly basis all to earn a spot in Masters events and the Champions event at the end of the year.
Below this, there will now be domestic leagues that will serve up opportunities for players to showcase their skills and abilities in the hopes of reaching the elite international leagues. Likewise, there will be better in-game support for the competitive scene, meaning it should be even easier to identify talented and capable players, who can potentially be recruited into the domestic and international leagues.
"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."
To this end, Riot has stated that it will be running an application process over 2022 to select the long-term partner teams invested in the international leagues in the Americas, EMEA, and Asia. Whoever is selected will be able to distribute branded esports content to Valorant players around the world.
