Overall, the current competitive scene in VALORANT has multiple regions competing in Tier 2 tournaments to try and climb to the top. Accordingly, the VALORANT Challengers 2023 NA Split 1 is kicking off in the coming days. Read on to learn more about the event below!
Event Background
For those unaware, VALORANT Challengers this year is Tier 2 compared to last year, when it was Tier 1. Indeed, now titled the VALORANT Challenger League, this format will allow teams not in the partnered league to make it to Tier 1 should they manage to ascend.
Hosted online, the event will take place from 1st February to 17th March. Competing for the prize pool and the opportunity to compete in Ascension are the following 12 teams:
- M80
- FaZe Clan
- TSM
- Shopify Rebellion
- G2 Esports
- The Guard
- BreakThru
- Disguised
- Oxygen Esports
- Dark Ratio
- Squirtle Squad
- OREsports
So, apart from the rights to be the top in the region at Tier 2, there’s only one two-year promotion spot in the VCT Americas league up for grabs here. Teams here are trying to earn a spot in the Ascension tournament later this year to earn this temporary spot.
Format
With regards to the format, this event will feature two stages of competition.
Firstly, the competition will be split into two groups of 6. Here, the format is a single round-robin, meaning that teams compete against one another only once in BO3 matches.
From each group, only the top 4 will progress to compete in the Playoffs. Here are the randomly seeded groups below:
Group A:
- FaZe Clan
- Shopify Rebellion
- G2 Esports
- BreakThru
- Oxygen Esports
- Squirtle Squad
Group B:
- TSM
- The Guard
- M80
- Disguised
- Dark Ratio
- OREsports
Once in the Playoffs, teams will compete in a double elimination bracket with everyone starting in the Upper Bracket.
Here, teams have two lifelines. Moreover, a loss in the Upper Bracket demotes a team to the Lower Bracket. Furthermore, another loss results in the team being eliminated from the competition.
Schedule for the VALORANT Challengers 2023 NA Split 1
Although we can’t list the entire schedule, here’s a snippet through the first Week in the CET timezone:
Week 1
February 1st 2023
- FaZe Clan vs G2 Esports (22:00)
- The Guard vs DSG (01:00)
February 2nd 2023
- TSM vs DR (22:00)
- BT vs Oxygen Esports (01:00)
February 3rd 2023
- Shopify Rebellion vs SS (22:00)
- M80 vs OR (01:00)
To view more of the schedule, we recommend tuning into the VALORANT esports Twitter page here.
Watch the VALORANT Challengers 2023 NA Split 1 on esportsguide
You can also watch the event live stream via our very own website. Providing an extensive list of the biggest esports together with streams for each esports match live today or upcoming matches.
Predictions
Well, predictions are very difficult here considering that these teams have all formed prior to this event. However, the likes of The Guard and TSM both competed at the Ludwig x Tarik Invitational, both of them beating out Tier 1 competition in Sentinels and T1.
Accordingly, they’re favourites here as the only teams who’ve played competitively for us all to see. However, we can’t wait to be surprised in the coming weeks.
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