The VCT Ascension EMEA 2025 will take place from October 19 to 26, on LAN, at the Riot Games Arena in Berlin. This tournament will bring together six teams from the various national leagues across the EMEA region and will determine which two squads will earn a spot in the VCT EMEA for the 2026 season.

Throughout the year, dozens of teams compete across six regional leagues, divided according to countries and areas within the EMEA zone. Beyond their domestic leagues, these teams also meet three times per season during the Challengers events. These tournaments feature the top two teams from each league—except for VCL NORTH//EAST, which sends four—and give them the opportunity to fight for crucial Ascension Points in hopes of qualifying for the end-of-season Ascension tournament.

Following the relegation of Apeks, the 2024 Ascension champions, and Gentle Mates, winners of the inaugural edition in 2023, two spots have now opened up in the VCT EMEA. These will be up for grabs by the six teams competing in this year’s Ascension event.

Qualified Teams for VCT Ascension EMEA 2025

How to Qualify for Ascension tournament

To qualify for the tournament, there were three possible paths. For Apeks and Gentle Mates—who had secured a slot through their previous Ascension victories—both clubs had the chance to defend their place among the elite, provided they performed well during the season. However, after finishing last and second-to-last overall in the 2025 season, both organizations were automatically relegated to VALORANT Challengers Leagues, failing to meet Riot Games’ competitive standards. As a result, all six teams participating in this year’s Ascension will come from the Challengers circuit.

For these squads, the road to Ascension requires either winning the Stage 3 EMEA tournament or finishing among the top five teams in the overall points standings. These points are awarded to the rosters based on their performances across the three different splits within their respective national or regional leagues, as well as on the results they achieve during the three EMEA Challengers tournaments throughout the season.

Ascension EMEA teams

BBL PCIFIC (Challengers Türkiye)

The all-Turkish roster of PCIFIC Esports has been the standout team in Europe this year, winning nearly everything in their path. Affiliated with BBL, a VCT EMEA participant, the organization claimed first place in both the Türkiye Kickoff and Stage 1 events, defeating Eternal Fire and ULF Esports respectively. These two victories allowed PCIFIC to qualify for two EMEA Challengers tournaments. They went on to win the first Challengers of the season in dominant fashion, once again overpowering their compatriots from Eternal Fire—whom they had already beaten at the Kickoff.

In the following regional Challengers event, BBL PCIFIC reached the grand final once again but narrowly lost to Enterprise Esports. Thanks to their early-season successes, the Turkish squad secured their spot at the VCT Ascension tournament as early as the beginning of August.

Enterprise Esports (Challengers NORTH//EAST)

Enterprise Esports, the team that edged out PCIFIC in the EMEA Challengers Stage 2 final, had already made a name for themselves by winning the NORTH//EAST league before advancing to the regional tournament. Their strong form was evident early on, with a top-three finish in the Kickoff—behind Szach Mat and Team Liquid’s academy team—setting the tone for a solid campaign.

Their only major misstep came during the first EMEA Challengers of the season, where they failed to make it out of the group stage after losses to PCIFIC and the German squad CGN. Despite that setback, Enterprise rebounded quickly and became the second team to lock in a spot at Ascension—right alongside their fiercest rivals from Turkey, early in August.