The VCT 2024 EMEA Kickoff is Valorant's top-flight competition in Europe. The best two teams in the region will qualify for the Masters Madrid, as they will play against the best rosters from America and Asia.
Here's everything you need to know about the VCT 2024 EMEA Kickoff!
Start date
The VCT EMEA Kickoff will begin on Feb. 20 and will be played until Mar. 2. The teams will be playing in Berlin, Germany, as Riot recently announced the opening of the Riot Games Arena.
Format
Just like the rest of the regional divisions, the VCT EMEA Kickoff will be split into three stages: group stage, play-ins, and playoffs. Here's a brief look at all of them:
Group Stage
First, the eleven teams in the competition will be divided into three groups. While Group A and Group B will have four rosters, Group C will have three.
Each group will have a double-elimination bracket and all of the matches will follow a BO3 format. The best team from each group will move to the playoffs, while the second-seeded rosters will move to a play-in.
Play-In
The play-in will be a Single Round Robin group with matches to the best of three maps. The best team after the conclusion of all the games will qualify for the playoffs.
Playoffs
Finally, the remaining four teams will compete in the playoffs. The winner of each match will qualify for the Masters Madrid.
Teams
The VCT EMEA Kickoff will have eleven teams: ten partner organizations and one roster from the Ascension 2023. Here's a brief look at all of them!
Team Liquid
Despite winning the VCT 2023 EMEA League, Team Liquid's results outside of Europe didn't meet the organization's expectations: a Top 6 finish at the Masters Tokyo was followed by a winless performance at the VALORANT Champions 2023.
Due to the lack of positive results in the final part of the 2023 season, Team Liquid made three roster changes heading to the upcoming year of action and signed three Apeks players in Enzo "Enzo" Mestari, Georgio "Keiko" Sanassy, and James "Mistic" Orfila.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:fi Elias "Jamppi" Olkkonen
- #flag@20:ru Ayaz "nAts" Akhmetshin
- #flag@20:fr Enzo "Enzo" Mestari
- #flag@20:gb Georgio "Keiko" Sanassy
- #flag@20:gb James "Mistic" Orfila
Fnatic
Without a doubt, Fnatic is the best team in EMEA. Their second-place finish at the VCT 2023 EMEA League was followed by a victory at the Masters Tokyo and a Top 4 finish at the VALORANT Champions 2023.
If a team gets results, don't change it. That's exactly what Fnatic did, as they made no roster changes heading to the 2024 season.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:gb Jake "Boaster" Howlett
- #flag@20:fi Nikita "Derke" Sirmitev
- #flag@20:tr Emir "Alfajer" Ali
- #flag@20:se Leo "Leo" Jannesson
- #flag@20:ru Timofey "Chronicle" Khromov
FUT Esports
FUT Esports' 2023 season was full of ups and downs. While their international performances were a bit disappointing, the Turkish players were very unlucky in the VALORANT Champions 2023 as they went home after only falling to Fnatic and Evil Geniuses.
Heading to the next season, FUT Esports welcomed the Turkish 18-year-old Eray "yetujey" Budak and the former Natus Vincere player Mehmet "cNed" Yağız.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:tr Doğukan "qRaxs" Balaban
- #flag@20:tr Furkan "MrFaliN" Yeğen
- #flag@20:tr Ata "ATA KAPTAN" Tan
- #flag@20:tr Eray "yetujey" Budak
- #flag@20:tr Mehmet "cNed" Yağız
Natus Vincere
Natus Vincere finished the VCT 2023 EMEA League in fourth place, which qualified the team for the VALORANT Champions 2023. Unfortunately, the roster was group staged after defeats to DRX and LOUD.
The team only made one roster move since their underwhelming performance at the VALORANT Champions 2023 as they signed Ardis "ardiis" Svarenieks. The Latvian player had played alongside his current teammates for FunPlus Phoenix but was separated after he signed for NRG in Nov. 2022.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:ua Kyrylo "ANGE1" Karasov
- Dmitry "SUYGETSU" Ilyushin
- Andrey "Shao" Kiprsky
- #flag@20:se Pontus "Zyppan" Eek
- #flag@20:lv Ardis "ardiis" Svarenieks
Team Vitality
Team Vitality's performance during the 2023 campaign was underwhelming, hence why the French organization decided to transform its entire roster. The new lineup is a mix of experience and talent, which could work well in the VCT EMEA Kickoff.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:lt Jokūbas "ceNder" Labutis
- #flag@20:mk Emil "runneR" Trajkovski
- #flag@20:ee Kimmie "Kicks" Laasner
- #flag@20:se Saif "Sayf" Jibraeel
- #flag@20:fi Santeri "BONECOLD" Heikki
GIANTX
The Spanish organization had an incredible year after qualifying for multiple international events, including the Masters Tokyo and the VALORANT Champions 2023. Now, they team will try to reach the top positions in their region and qualify for the Masters Madrid, which would be a huge success for the brand.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:es Adolfo "fit1nho" Gallego
- #flag@20:ru Kirill "Cloud" Nehozhin
- #flag@20:fi Aaro "hoody" Peltokangas
- #flag@20:lt Žygimantas "nukkye" Chmieliauskas
- #flag@20:ru Igor "Redgar" Vlasov
BBL Esports
Despite making three changes to the team's lineup, BBL Esports have kept their essence as all of their additions come from the Turkish scene. However, it will be difficult for the Turkish roster to sneak into the region's Top 2.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:tr Doğukan "QutionerX" Dural
- #flag@20:tr Eren "Brave" Kasırga
- #flag@20:tr Efe "Elite" Teber
- #flag@20:tr Melih "pAura" Karaduran
- #flag@20:tr Kaan "reazy" Ürpek
Team Heretics
In October 2023, Team Heretics announced three roster moves for the 2024 season. Just like other teams in the league, the organization decided to invest in Europe's tier two scene. Is this a winning formula?
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:lt Ričardas "Boo" Lukaševičius
- #flag@20:gb Benjy "Benjyfishy" David
- #flag@20:lt Dominykas "MiniBoo" Lukaševičius
- #flag@20:tr Enes "RieNs" Ecirli
- #flag@20:tr Mert "Wo0t" Alkan
KOI
Led by the experienced José "koldamenta" Luís, the Spanish organization heads to the 2024 season with the idea of improving the results seen in the last campaign.
Just like GIANTX, the Spanish brand is aiming to qualify for the Masters Madrid, as they want to play in front of their fans in the first Masters event of the year.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:es José "koldamenta" Luís
- #flag@20:ru Bogdan "Sheydos" Naumov
- #flag@20:ru Nikita "trexx" Cherednichenko
- #flag@20:pl Patryk "starxo" Kopczyński
- TBD
Karmine Corp
After finishing at the bottom of the VCT 2023 EMEA League standings, Karmine Corp decided to make four roster changes. Although they kept Ryad "Shin" Ensaad, the French organization built its new roster around multiple Tier 2 players. Will the new team get the desired results in 2024?
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:fr Ryad "Shin" Ensaad
- #flag@20:cz Martin "Magnum" Peňkov
- #flag@20:cz Martin "marteen" Paték
- #flag@20:us Marshall "N4RRATE" Massey
- #flag@20:pt Tomás "tomaszy" Machado
Gentle Mates
The French organization qualified for the VCT 2024 EMEA Kickoff after winning the Ascension League in Jul. 2023.
After losing to Ascend in the Upper Bracket, the French roster went unbeaten and only lost one map out of a possible nine. Their Lower Bracket run included a 3-0 rematch against Ascend, where they won on Split by 19-17 after a heated overtime.
Expected lineup:
- #flag@20:fr Beyazıt "beyAz" Körpe
- #flag@20:fr Logan "logaN" Corti
- #flag@20:fr Nathan "nataNk" Bocqueho
- #flag@20:fr Jonathan "TakaS" Paupard
- #flag@20:fr Wailers "Wailers" Locart