The Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) is Riot Games' official competitive circuit for Valorant. The 2026 season is built around four International Leagues — Americas, EMEA, Pacific and China — which run two stages across the year, plus the Kickoff tournament at the start of the season and two Masters events. The circuit ends with Champions, the world championship.
Each International League stage awards Championship Points through its playoffs; those points, combined with Stage 2 playoff results, decide which teams qualify for Champions. The 2026 season added a second Masters: the year opened with Kickoff and Masters Santiago in March, with a further Masters event later in the year before Champions. According to the official VCT references, Masters Santiago 2026 was a $1 million event with 12 teams, where the winners of the four international leagues earned byes into an eight-team double-elimination playoff bracket.
For viewers the season has a clear rhythm: Kickoff and Masters in the first half, league stages feeding points through the middle of the year, and Champions in the fall as the single tournament that decides the world champion. Because every stage contributes points, league games matter even when a team has already qualified for an international event.
This overview reflects the 2026 VCT structure as described by valorantesports.com and the tournament references, current as of September 14, 2026.