Riot Announces 25 Offseason Valorant Events across all regions

Published: Sep 29, 2022 4:10 pm
Updated: Sep 29, 2022 4:11 pm

After the season concluded with LOUD taking the World Championship back to Brazil, the attention quickly turned to the offseason. With a five-month break and massive roster changes with the partnership system incoming, fans were left wondering if Riot would finally announce the third-party events that have been teased since 2021.

In an official Riot press release, those looming questions have been answered. Riot announced 25 events taking place across all three major regions lasting the entire VALORANT offseason. 

Riot allowing tournament organizers to experiment with format

The events will consist of many different formats and players, as Riot has committed to giving partnered esports organizations free rein to experiment. This includes content creator-geared events, pick-ban formats, and agent drafting. In North America alone, four out of the five events will include irregular formats, displaying Riot’s intention to test out different tournament structures ahead of the season.

Nonetheless, Riot is building an ecosystem not solely centred around partnered teams. It’s an opportunity to expand outside the hyper-competitive VCT events and focus on the fun aspects of the game. More importantly, these events will give VALORANT fans content to survive the offseason.

Moreover, does the question then become which approach will work best for fans? North America is the only region running different formats, while Europe and Asia are more geared towards open competitions and bringing together tier-one teams. It’s a good chance for Riot to learn more about their audience and deduce which formats work and which ones don’t. Regardless, variety in the makeup of the event will make for compelling and unique entertainment.

25 Offseason events across all three regions

In total, 25 events will populate the globe: eight events in the Americas, nine in APAC, and eight in Europe. The third-party events will run from October 1st all the way up through January. The main difference, outside of differing formats, is the number of show matches across the regions.

For example, APAC has a disproportionate amount of region vs region crossover, unlike EMEA or the Americas. Europe, on the other hand, has the highest concentration of pro-player-focused events with Red Bull Home Grounds and the G-Loot VALORANT Clash. While North America, as mentioned previously, is more focused on experimenting and running open brackets with the popular Knights Arena VALORANT Freezeout.

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Clearly, the mix of different types of events will give every fan of VALORANT something to look forward to. It’s a great opportunity for prospective players, organizations, and tournament organizers to show Riot their commitment to the game and help it grow past the franchise structure. It’s huge for tier-two as well, giving players another outlet outside the Ascension tournaments. 

In addition, we see Brazil get a number of events along with Latin American countries. We also see the return of VLRs in Turkey and the DACH region. Riot has a little bit for every type of fan.

Events and dates for the VALORANT OFF//SEASON:

AMERICAS TERRITORY OFF//SEASON EVENT

• Copa Rakin (Brazil)
• BoomTV
• Knights Arena VALORANT Freezeout (NA)
  • Dates: Dec 15 –  Dec 18
• Spike Series Invitational (Brazil)
• Vava BTS Sunset (Brazil)
• VALORANT Latam Gods
• Ludwig x Tarik Invitational (NA)

PACIFIC TERRITORY OFF//SEASON EVENTS

• TEC Challenger Series
  • Dates: Sept 29th – October 13th

• TEN 5_Valorant Korea vs. Japan Showmatch

• Valorant India Invitational by Galaxy Racer (GXR)

• Penta Pro Series – Valorant

• TEN 5_ Valorant Korea vs. Japan

• TEN 5_ Valorant Special Match

• Gwangju Esports Series (GES) Asia

• WCG Rivals – Valorant: Korea vs Japan

• Afreeca TV SEA Invitational
  • Dates: Nov 29th – December 4th

EMEA TERRITORY OFF//SEASON EVENTS

• Crossfire Cup Mediamarkt e Intel

• VALORANT REGIONAL LeagueTürkiye Invitational

• VALORANT REGIONAL League Dach Evolution: Unity

• Red Bull Home Ground 2022

Blake Van Poucke

Blake Van Poucke is a Valorant writer at esports.gg. He found esports through the early days of MLG and the Super Smash Bros Melee scene. He’s been competing and writing about esports dating back to 2008. He has written for several publications and wishes to return to in-person esports events in 2022