The largest Valorant occasion of the yr is heading to Shanghai for the primary time in historical past. The upcoming Valorant Champions 2026 is all set to shut out the year-long VCT season and crown a brand new world champion, bringing down the curtain on the franchised period earlier than the format shifts to an open qualifier system in 2027.
Whether or not you’re right here to know extra in regards to the certified groups in Champions 2026, the occasion Choose’Ems, schedule, or the place to observe it dwell, we’ve acquired you coated. Right here’s all the things that you must learn about Valorant Champions 2026.
Valorant Champions 2026: Dates, Venue, and Format
Valorant Champions 2026 is scheduled to run from September 24 to October 18, 2026, in Shanghai, China. As talked about earlier, this marks the first time that China will get to host the world championship, and Riot is splitting the venue duties throughout two arenas:
- Jing’an Sports activities Middle ( Group Stage and the early rounds of Playoffs)
- Mercedes-Benz Enviornment (Playoffs Prime 4 and the Grand Ultimate)
The largest annual Valorant occasion will see 16 groups battle for a whopping $2,250,000 USD prize pool, with $1 million going to the profitable workforce.
The event will observe the identical GSL-style format used lately. 4 teams of 4 groups every will play a double-elimination mini-bracket, and the highest two from every group will then transfer on to the Playoff stage, which can be double-elimination.
Valorant Champions 2026: All Certified Groups
Sixteen slots are break up evenly throughout the 4 worldwide leagues: Americas, EMEA, Pacific, and China. Groups can earn their spot both by reaching the Stage 2 grand remaining of their area, or by racking up sufficient Championship Factors throughout Kickoff, the 2 Masters occasions, and Stage 1 and a pair of in the event that they fall in need of that grand remaining.
Right here’s the total record of confirmed groups thus far for Valorant Champions 2026:
China
- TYLOO
- JD Gaming
- EDward Gaming
- XLG Esports
EMEA
- Karmine Corp
- Crew Liquid
- FUT Esports
- Crew Vitality
Pacific
- International Esports
- Nongshim RedForce
- Paper Rex
- T1
Americas
- 100Thieves
- NRG
- G2 Esports
By the point the Group Stage draw occurs, the total 16-team subject will probably be locked and seeded into swimming pools primarily based on how every workforce certified, guaranteeing each group has one consultant from every area.
Valorant Champions 2026 Schedule
Under, we have now listed the schedule for Valorant Champions 2026:
| Stage | Dates |
| Regional Stage 2 Finals finish (final Champions slot determined) | September 6, 2026 |
| Group Stage begins | September 24, 2026 |
| Playoffs | Continues by way of mid-October |
| Grand Ultimate | October 18, 2026 |
Precise every day match instances for the Group Stage and Playoffs will probably be revealed nearer to the occasion as soon as the draw is finalized.
Valorant Champions 2026: The place to Watch
Valorant followers will be capable of catch all of the motion that unfolds throughout Valorant Champions 2026 dwell by tuning into the official Twitch and YouTube handles of the shooter.
Provided that Champions is being held in China this yr, gamers can anticipate a powerful local-language broadcast push alongside the standard English-language fundamental stream, since Chinese language viewership made up the majority of the viewers the final time a world Valorant occasion was held within the nation.
Valorant Champions 2026 Choose’Ems
Just like earlier main Valorant occasions, Choose’Ems are returning to the sport for Champions 2026. For the uninitiated, Choose’Ems are a fan-prediction function that lets gamers predict match outcomes for a shot at free in-game cosmetics.
Riot has confirmed that Choose’ems for Champions Shanghai will kick off on September 10, 2026.
Group Stage predictions will probably be out there each within the consumer and on the internet from that date, and also you’ll wish to lock in your picks earlier than the Group Stage itself begins on September 24, since predictions shut as soon as the video games begin.
The rewards for the Valorant Champions 2026 Choose’Ems have additionally seemingly leaked on-line. Right here’s what you’ll doubtless be capable of seize primarily based on the leaks we’ve seen thus far:
| Requirement | Reward |
| Submit not less than one Choose’em prediction | “Calculated” participant title |
| End within the high 50% of individuals | “Stone of Heaven” gun buddy |
| End within the high 20% of individuals | “Choose’ems Grasp: Stone of Heaven” gun buddy (gold variant) |
| Get each single prediction right | “100%” participant title |
That’s all the things that you must learn about Valorant Champions 2026 earlier than it commences later this month.
Hi, I’m Rishab. I’m a passionate pc gamer and an avid video game content writer. I have been involved with video games for over 2 decades now, and even today, after playing an astronomical number of games over the years, I’m still eager for more. In my free time, you will find me enjoying a hot cup of coffee and playing my favorite relaxing fishing game, Dave the Diver.
