VCT EMEA 2026 Kick-Off Bracket

On the eve of the VALORANT Champions Tour EMEA Kickoff, the league opens its season on January 20 with a short, condensed format in which every match carries immediate consequences. The event features all ten VCT EMEA franchised teams — BBL Esports, Fnatic, FUT Esports, Gentle Mates, GIANTX, Karmine Corp, Natus Vincere, Team Heretics, Team Liquid, Team Vitality — and two teams from Ascension: PCIFIC Esports, and ULF Esports.

This year, Riot introduces a triple-elimination system across all VCT leagues: each team effectively plays with three lives. The Upper Bracket rewards teams capable of stringing wins together, offering the most direct route toward the top. The Middle Bracket functions as an immediate recovery lane after a first defeat, still in contention, but with no margin for a second mistake. The Lower Bracket is survival by design: a third loss ends the run, and mental resilience becomes as decisive as mechanical execution.

The format produces a clear hierarchy, with three distinct finals corresponding to three international tickets. This structure keeps the stakes consistently high: even after a loss, a path remains, often longer and more demanding, to rebuild momentum, validate their level, and, above all, secure a place at Masters Santiago 2026.

Kickoff opens immediately with headline Round 1 matchups, including Natus Vincere vs Karmine Corp and FUT Esports vs Gentle Mates, while promoted Ascension teams PCIFIC Esports and ULF Esports step straight into the challenge against BBL Esports and Team Vitality. The four teams that represented the EMEA league at Champions Paris — Fnatic, GIANTX, Team Heretics, and Team Liquid — are exempt from the first round and will therefore begin their campaign in the second round of the upper bracket. All matches will be played in a best-of-three format, with the exception of the three bracket finals, which will be played as best-of-five series.