All you need to know about VCT EMEA Kickoff 2026

Jack Stewart, Senior Editor

Last Updated: 10/12/2025

The 2026 Valorant esports season is getting started in EMEA with the Kickoff event, which will feature a new triple elimination format.

All 12 VCT EMEA teams will compete across four weeks, including the controversial new/returning partners Gentle Mates and promoted teams PCIFIC Esports and ULF Esports.

The Kickoff will then effectively feature three finals, one for each bracket, to decide who qualifies for Valorant Masters Santiago.

Here is everything you need to know about the VCT EMEA Kickoff 2026 event.

How triple elimination will work in VCT EMEA Kickoff 2026

The triple elimination format will essentially give teams three lives. Once they lose a third series, they’re eliminated.

There will be three brackets, with every team starting in the Upper Bracket and they’ll stay there as long as they keep winning.

Once a team loses, they will drop down into the Middle Bracket. Another loss will send them into the Lower Bracket, where another loss will end their tournament.

Each bracket will conclude with a separate final, with the winner of each securing a spot at the first international tournament of the year.

The four teams that competed at VALORANT Champions Paris 2025 – Fnatic, Team Liquid, GIANTX, and Team Heretics – will all be given a bye.

They will start in Round 2 of the Upper Bracket and will face the winners from the first series.

Each series will be a best-of-three, except each bracket final which will all be best-of-fives.

Schedule: VCT EMEA 2026 Kickoff week-by-week breakdown

Riot Games has also revealed the dates and game days for the first EMEA event of the year.

During the four-week event, the first three weeks will feature matches from Tuesday to Friday with two best-of-threes each day.

Week 4 will be different with games on Thursday to Sunday, including all three best-of-five finals in front of a live crowd.

Week 1 will consist of Round 1 and 2 of the Upper Bracket for eight matches in total, requiring the Round 1 winners to place twice in one week.

Then, Week 2 will feature the Upper Bracket Semi-finals and the start of the Middle Bracket.

Week 3 will feature elimination matches from the Lower Bracket, with matches from the Middle Bracket in between to give teams a break.

And finally, Week 4 will see best-of-threes on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to solve the Middle and Lower Bracket finalists.

Friday and Saturday will then feature a best-of-three series before a best-of-five final, while Sunday will only feature the Lower Bracket final.

Week 4 gams will start at 5pm GMT on Thursday and Sunday, while the Friday and Saturday game days will start at 1pm GMT.

The draw

The draw for the opening round is already set with the Upper Bracket Round 1 match-ups.

BBL Esports’ players will face their former organisation, the now-Ascended PCIFIC Esports, in a tense Turkish derby.

Meanwhile, ULF Esports will play their first-ever series as an Ascended team against Team Vitality.

Championship Points

The Championship Points system will return in 2026.

VCT EMEA teams will be able to earn points, which will count towards qualification for Valorant Champions Shanghai 2026.

At the end of the season, the two teams with the most Championship points will qualify for Valorant Champions Shanghai.

These points will be available during Kickoff, with the following distributions:

• Winner = 4 points
• 2nd place = 3 points
• 3rd place = 2 points
• 4th place = 1 point

Jack Stewart, Senior Editor

In my seven years of esports writing, I've introduced esports coverage to newspapers, interviewed some of the biggest names in the industry, and driven viewers mad with the puns in my YouTube scripts. I'm most proud of the latter.

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