Riot Games has officially confirmed that the esports center will reappear in the game’s client specifically for the start of VCT 2026. Update 12.01, apparently, will be the starting point for this comeback, because that’s when the first tournaments of the season will be played in the world regions. In fact, this is great news for those who live in esports — now you can follow the events and the new structure of Path to Champions in just one click, without shutting down VALORANT.
Table of Contents
What’s inside the Esports Hub: insights and functionality
The section itself will remain in its usual place — look for the “Esports” tab right in the menu. Inside, the developers have collected all the most important things — up-to-date match results, detailed schedules, line-up lists and a global grid of events.
You have to agree that this hub is a proven thing. It was first rolled out back in 2023, and since then it has become a real salvation for fans who don’t always have time to watch live streams. In addition, Riot is once again being given a chance to support its favorites with a coin — VCT command capsules for 2,320 VP will return to sale. Half of the net revenue, by the way, will go directly to organizations. And a little later, before the main show of the year, an exclusive VALORANT Champions 2026 bundle will appear in the store.
Events and schedule of VCT 2026
The VCT Kickoff tournaments are perhaps the toughest stage of the beginning of the year, which is already underway in America and the Middle East. The plan is simple — the three best teams from each league will take invitations to the first world event, the VALORANT Masters in Santiago.
Further — more. The teams will roll into Split 1 to try to make it to the London Masters, where only the three strongest representatives from each region will also go.
The second stage (Split 2) will be the final chord of the regional battles — here Ascension’s partners and winners will meet with the best from the Challengers, who have made their way through the sieve of the “Path to Champions” system. This is where the fate of the tickets for the final VALORANT Champions 2026 in Shanghai will be decided. By the way, it will be possible to get there either for high places in the playoffs, or by accumulating enough points in the rating table.
VCT 2026 Schedule:
-
VCT Kickoff: from January 15th to February 15th.
-
VALORANT Masters Santiago: from February 28 to March 15.
-
Split 1: from March 31 to May 10.
-
First Split playoffs: from May 6 to May 24.
-
VALORANT Masters London: from 6 to 21 June.
-
Split 2: From June 30th to August 16th.
-
Regional Finals: from August 5th to September 6th.
-
VALORANT Champions Shanghai: from September 24 to October 18.
You can watch the whole thing on Twitch or YouTube — regional leagues are broadcast in local languages, and official VCT channels will traditionally take over world events. The season itself promises to be really hot and with great views from the monitor screens.
