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VCT Americas League 2024 is about to kick off very soon. Unlike the previous year, 2024 will see a total of 11 teams competing for the Americas League trophy. This is due to the Ascension tournament, which saw top tier-2 teams compete at the regional level to make their way to the top and earn a partnership status.
The Guard earned themselves a franchised slot for the 2024 season. However, due to certain complications, G2 Esports replaced The Guard as NA's 11th team, confirming their position as a tier-1 VCT team. Out of these 11 teams, the top two will make their way to VCT Masters Madrid. As such, 2024 has a lot of potential for creating some exciting moments.
Below is a list of five teams to look out for in the Americas League.
Note: This article is subjective and solely reflects the writer's opinions.
5 best VCT Americas teams in 2024
1) NRG Esports
NRG Esports had a tough time in VCT 2023. The team had a 5th–8th place finish at LOCK//IN after a close series against LOUD and started out slow at the beginning of the Americas League. While their performance was great during Masters Tokyo, they truly suffered during the final event, Valorant Champions 2023. This was when China's Bilibili Gaming defeated them twice and eliminated them in the Group Stage itself.
In 2024, the team made some big changes to the roster. NRG brought OpTic Gaming core's Marved and the current world champions, Demon1 and Ethan, to the squad. This is easily the scariest-looking team in the Americas League and can do serious damage. Many people from the Valorant community have already predicted that this team will come out on top of the VCT Americas League.
2) Sentinels
Sentinels were one of the strongest teams heading into VCT 2023; however, their performance ended up being very underwhelming. The team could not make it to any international event in 2023 and suffered greatly due to constant role switches among the players.
Sentinels made a couple of changes to the roster ahead of the 2024 season. They recruited the Ascension runner-up M80's johnqt as their new IGL (in-game leader) and Cloud9's Zellsis as their sixth player. This new team was able to destroy their competition in the OFF//Season event, the AfreecaTV Valorant League, where they won the event with ease. The new Sentinels roster has a lot of potential and can definitely become one of the best teams coming into VCT's 2024 season.
3) Leviatán
In 2023, Leviatán entered the Americas League as one of the dark horses of the event. However, they could not live up to their potential. Leviatán struggled throughout the year and failed to make it to any international VCT events.
For 2024, Leviatán has made some major changes to the roster. In one of the biggest moves of the season, Leviatán got one of the best Duelist players in the world, aspas, on their roster. They also acquired the current world champion from Evil Geniuses, C0M, and The Guard's tex to complete the team. Due to these additions, Leviatán has become a big talking point again and could very well create some huge upsets in the VCT Americas League.
4) G2 Esports
G2 Esports started out in 2023 by competing their way through NA's Challengers event. While the roster was completely different, it was filled with pro players with a lot of experience. The team had a lot of potential but could never fully capitalize on it and thus suffered heavily. Currently, G2 Esports has taken over The Guard's roster and their franchised spot.
The new G2 Esports is a formidable roster to go up against. The players here have incredible synergy, as they have been together since 2022. On top of this, G2 Esports also got Cloud9's very talented pro, leaf, to complete the roster. Many pros from the Valorant community have already praised this team's skill, and now they can prove it to everyone else by becoming the top team in the Americas League.
5) 100 Thieves
100 Thieves was predicted to be one of the top teams during VCT 2023. However, they did not live up to those expectations. Besides not being able to qualify for any international VCT events, they also had a disappointing performance in the Americas League.
However, 2024 might just be their year to turn things around. 100 Thieves have brought in top-class talent to their roster this year. This includes the recruitment of the current world champion, Boostio, as their new IGL, along with eeiu from the Ascension runner-ups, M80. They also got Evil Geniuses' assistant coach, Zikz, to pave a new path for the team. Both Boostio and Zikz were pivotal for their success as world champions during VCT 2023 and could do a lot of great things for 100 Thieves as well.
