Sources: VALORANT set to join the Esports Nations Cup lineup in 2026

After years of waiting, the first global nation-based competition in VALORANT is finally set to happen. According to sources close to the matter and in contact with Sheep Esports, Riot Games’ FPS will indeed be part of the first edition of the Esports Nations Cup, scheduled for November 2026 in Saudi Arabia. Organized by the Esports World Cup Foundation, which already runs the now well-known EWC, the event will feature nearly 16 different games, with dozens of national teams from around the world competing against each other.

While the full set of rules for the competition and for national selections has not yet been revealed, some information is already available. Half of the teams will be invited directly, while the other half will have to go through regional qualifiers, whose exact format and structure are still unknown. The overall size of the event is also unclear, with the EWCF only stating that team tournaments will feature between 24 and 48 teams, and between 32 and 128 players for solo titles.

Based on the four games already announced by the EWCF, Trackmania, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, Dota 2, and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, invited nations are determined through an international ranking. This ranking is calculated from results in official competitions, where clubs earn points based on their placement, which are then distributed equally among the participating players. Each country only counts the points of its five best selected players.

In addition to these points, there is another key rule that future national team selectors will need to consider. It is forbidden to field a national team composed entirely of players from the same club. This makes it impossible, for example, for Turkey to send the full FUT Esports roster or for Korea to field only DRX players. That said, the exact number of players from the same organization allowed on a single national team is still unknown at the time of writing.

It should be noted that Russia and Belarus, in line with International Olympic Committee regulations, are banned from team competitions but not from individual events, with the EWCF largely basing its rules on those of the IOC. As with the Olympic Games, Taiwan is therefore expected to compete under the name Chinese Taipei.

For MLBB, the ranking includes international, regional, and national tournaments up until August 2, 2026, while for Dota 2, only Tier 1 competitions since June 8, 2025 are taken into account, with a cutoff date of June 7, 2026. A similar format could therefore be applied to VALORANT, based on official leagues and results since August 2025. The cutoff date would likely be set around the regional qualifiers.

Speaking of qualifiers, if we once again look at the two MOBAs already announced, up to 32 nations could be involved, with a top 16 determined by direct invitations, two spots awarded via Wildcards, and the remaining 14 places coming through qualifiers, although Sheep Esports does not have details on the exact number of participants. Following the MLBB and Dota 2 models, these slots would be decided across eight or nine different tournaments, each awarding one or two places.

Internally, both games split Europe into two regions, Western Europe and Eastern Europe, with the latter being combined with Central Asia for MLBB. Dota 2, on the other hand, places Central Asia in the same qualifier as the MENA region. Asia as a whole is divided into three parts, one grouping Southeast Asia and Oceania, with the others covering East Asia and South Asia.

The Americas are split more simply into North and South America, with one key difference in allocation. MLBB offers a single slot for South America, while Dota 2 provides two. Finally, Africa unsurprisingly has the fewest spots, with one qualifier for Sub-Saharan Africa, while North Africa is grouped with the MENA region for MLBB. These various regional combinations offer an indication of what VALORANT qualifiers could look like, although it is worth noting that the EWCF adapts its structure to each game and its player base.

Close in concept to the Olympic Games, Riot Games’ title will therefore be among the 16 disciplines played, with a World Champion title on the line, to be contested every two years. While this first edition will take place in Riyadh, like the EWC, the organization has already announced that the ENC is expected to move to different host countries for each edition, further expanding the event’s global scope. This comes at a time when the International Olympic Committee has recently canceled the first esports Olympic Games, which were scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia in 2027.

It is also important to note that this is not the first nation-based competition for either game. Previous events include the Asian Games, also set to take place in 2026, where South Korea is the reigning champion of League of Legends, as well as the SEA Esports Championship and the Central American and Caribbean Games.