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Upon releasing the 30 esports teams who were selected in the Valorant partnership program, Riot Games recently sent out a list of Roster Construction Rules for the involved organizations.
According to the rules, the selected teams were mandated to have just one import player for the entirety of 2023 and at least four residents on their starting roster. The game developer revealed that the decision was reached to protect the regional identity of each team as they participate in international events.
“In order to maintain the regional identity of the VCT Participating Teams that compete in a global competition and to encourage the type of regional identification that is important to fans and sponsors, each Team must maintain, at all times during the Season, at least four (4) Team Members on its starting roster who are Residents,” Riot Games wrote.
The 2023 VCT will revolve around three leagues, which are the Americas (North America, Latin America, and Brazil), the EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), and finally, the Pacific League. Each nation in the mentioned leagues is, according to Riot’s ruling, League Territory.
The game developer revealed that among the five North American squads selected in the American League, which includes NRG, Cloud9, Sentinels, Evil Geniuses, and 100 Thieves, one could fill their entire lineup with Brazilian players if they chose to do so. However, each franchise are allowed to sign only one player from the Pacific or EMEA.
“For example, the United States and Brazil are part of the Americas League Territory, and Germany and Nigeria are part of the EMEA League Territory,” Riot wrote.
As a result of this, Valorant partners like T1, who were accepted as a Pacific league partner, will have to part ways with their predominantly North American roster in favor of an Asian-based lineup in order to complete the relocation.
Riot Games’ released import rules will notably make things more difficult for rejected teams like OpTic Gaming and XSET. The two organizations were unable to land a slot in the company’s franchise, and thus, the only way their lineup can remain in one place is if a squad in the Americas decides to add the players to their roster. Due to their region, the teams’ rosters will be unable to move to organizations in either the Pacific or the EMEA leagues.
While introducing their Roster Construction Rules, Valorant revealed that the entire reason for the mandates was to ensure that “competitive integrity within the international leagues of the VALORANT Champions Tour” was promoted. The purpose of the rules was also to ensure that players received equal opportunities with others regardless of their country of origin or region.
“The purpose of these Roster Construction Rules is to promote competitive integrity within the international Leagues of the VALORANT Champions Tour and to increase opportunities across national boundaries so that players in one country or region who have achieved a certain level of success in the game can compete on an equal footing with players at the same level of accomplishment in other countries and regions,” the rules read.
The first tournament for the VCT 2023 is an inaugural event dubbed the kick-off Tournament, and it will take place in São Paulo from February till early March. The event will feature the entire Valorant partnered teams.
