"China in franchise W, new league format L": Valorant pros upset with new VCT 2024 schedule

With the Valorant Champions 2023 currently underway, Riot Games has revealed the schedule for the upcoming VCT 2024 season, and it is set to be packed. While this is a good thing for viewership and finances, it's not that great for players because the entire calendar feels imbalanced. Esports tournaments can be very demanding on the participants.

Not only does it take a toll on them mentally, but it does the same physically as well. Appropriate breaks and a proper off-season are required. Sadly, that doesn't seem to be the case with VCT 2024. Pros involved in the tournament side of things have expressed their concerns about the same.

The VCT 2024 event card is stacked with very little to no breaks for Valorant pros

The VCT 2024 schedule (Image via Riot Games)

The situation is weird and is somewhat similar to last year's season as well. Qualified teams would have to participate back-to-back in events. In contrast, those who didn't qualify would not see any competitive action at the highest levels for prolonged periods of time.

While it's a good incentive for teams to try and make the cut-off, it can lead to immense burnout and directly affect player performances if they're subject to playing multiple tournaments without any breaks.

With 33 teams selected across all three regions for VCT 2024, not everyone will make it to the final championship. Not only that, there are no Last Chance Qualifiers either. So, assuming that 16 teams will be selected for the final tournament, 17 others will have to sit out and wait for the new season to begin.

Based on the calendar revealed by Riot Games, the final selection of the teams that will participate in the Valorant Champions 2024 will be ready by the month of July, when the second Valorant Masters ends. After that, it's a mad dash for the championships with a major break till the next season begins.

The 16 teams who qualify for the Champions 2024 tournament will have a short break starting in mid-July and ending in early September. This isn't enough for teams to recover and prepare for such a high-stakes tournament. The others who don't qualify will have to wait till the next season begins.

Although Riot Games has revamped the entire competitive circuit with a franchise system, these loopholes in planning can be detrimental to player growth and performance itself. Some might face major burnout, while others might lose their edge because of a lack of high-stakes events to participate in.

As of now, it is unlikely that the calendar will change, having been announced already. One only hopes that Riot Games will take into account the concerns of the players and will address them next time around.