Riot Games held the official kickoff event of the VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) Pacific League 2023 last March 17, 2023 at The Podium Hall, Mandaluyong City, Philippines. The launch marks Riot Games’ thrust to strengthen its presence in the Philippines and Asia Pacific region. Riot has significantly grown and expanded from SEA to APAC by folding in Japan, South Asia, and India.
Content creators and media representatives gathered around to celebrate the return of competitive Valorant with special performances and talks from Riot Games Philippines representatives.
Whether you are a long-time fan of Valorant esports or a brand-new player, here’s everything you need to know about VCT Pacific League 2023.
What is VCT Pacific?
VCT Pacific is one of the three international leagues in the new VCT structure, aimed at providing a new method for teams to qualify for premier-level global tournaments.
The VCT Pacific tournament will begin with ten teams competing in single-round-robin, League Play. Matches will be played in a best-of-three format. This stage will take place over a period of eight weeks.
Six teams will qualify from League Play and move forward to Playoffs where they will fight through double elimination rounds in a best-of-three format. Semi and grand finals will be played in a best-of-five format.
The top three teams from the Pacific league will qualify for Masters in June where they will meet the best teams from other international leagues in the Americas and EMEA. VCT Pacific champion will win a USD 250,000 total prize pool.
These top teams will also qualify for Champions in August where they will have a chance to fight for the title of VALORANT world champion. Other Pacific teams will have one more chance to fight for a slot at Champions through the VCT Pacific Last Chance Qualifiers in July.
How will the Philippines be represented in VCT Pacific 2023?
Joel Guzman, Country Manager of Riot Games Philippines, said: “The Filipino community is one of the biggest and most passionate VALORANT communities in the region. The start of this new competitive league in the Philippines is a natural step for our continued expansion in APAC, having already established a strong and growing presence in the region. We are committed to creating hyper-local experiences in the region, tailored to meet the needs of their passionate VALORANT players.”
VCT Pacific tournament promises to be a thrilling event as fans express their warm support to the Philippines squad, Team Secret, which is currently in Seoul preparing for the world stage.
The team will field Jessie Cristy “JessieVash” Cuyco, Jayvee “DubsteP” Paguirigan, Jim “BORKUM” Timbreza, Jeremy “Jremy” Cabrera, and Adrian “invy” Reyes, along with Singaporean reserve Lionel “lenne” Lim You Xiang and American coach Evan “Warbirds” Orzem.
Team Secret proved to be the one to look out for after they displayed a monumental upset against Netherland’s Team Liquid, 2-0, in the VCT LOCK//IN tournament in Sao Paulo, Brazil last February.
Other teams competing for the first-ever VCT Pacific title and prize pool of USD 250,000 include Indonesian squad Rex Regum Qeon, with two Pinoys in their roster, DetonatioN FocusMe, DRX, Gen.G, Global Esports, RRQ, T1, Talon Esports, and ZETA DIVISION.
According to the esports information website Liquipedia, Filipinos make up 14 percent (7) of the competition’s player base, third in line next to Japan (8) and hosts South Korea (18).
When is VCT Pacific 2023 and where can we watch it?
The regular season will happen from March 25 to May 16.
For viewers who prefer to watch in Tagalog, you can head to the Valorant PH Twitch or the official Valorant Esports Facebook and YouTube channels.
For those who prefer to view the games in English, you can go to the official Valorant Pacific Twitch channel or VCT Pacific YouTube and Facebook pages.