VCT Masters Madrid 2024: All teams' power rankings

VCT Masters Madrid 2024 is set to begin on March 14. Two teams from the leagues of EMEA, China, Pacific, and Americas will compete in the capital city of Spain over the span of 10 days to determine the first Masters winner of the year and secure three valuable VCT Points along with an undisclosed cash prize. This Masters event will be notable for a variety of reasons.

VCT Masters Madrid is guaranteed to be a highly viewed spectacle. This article will rank the eight teams present at VCT Masters Madrid from worst to best based on form, strength, and mechanical and strategic prowess.

NOTE: This article is subjective and solely reflects the views of the writer.

VCT Masters Madrid 2024 teams ranked from worst to best

Tier listing of all the teams. (Image via Tiermaker)

The teams at this event consist of players who are relatively new to the international scene of the VCT circuit. However, those present at this event also boast some of the largest fanbases in esports, with organizations such as LOUD, Karmine Corp, Team Heretics, and Sentinels having extremely dedicated and passionate fanbases.

8) FunPlus Phoenix

FunPlus Phoenix's VCT 2024 team (Image via FunPlus Phoenix)

FunPlus Phoenix will be attending VCT Masters Madrid 2024 as the second seed from China. The team had a strong showing at the China kickoff event, but the overall quality of gameplay in the tournament was quite poor compared to the remaining regions.

FunPlus Phoenix does have solid individual talents with crazy aim such as Life, BerLIN and Autumn. However, this will not be enough to power them to a higher spot in this ranking.

FunPlus Phoenix does not have many expectations around them coming into this event, which will make it highly exciting if they manage to pull off an upset against EMEA Kickoff champions Karmine Corp in their initial game.

FunPlus Phoenix's roster is:

Zhang "AAAAY" Yang
Chang "BerLIN" Po-Lin (IGL)
Liang "Lysoar" Youhao
Kale "autumn" Dunne
Qu "Life" Donghao
Deng "NaThanD" Senqiao (Head Coach)

7) EDward Gaming

EDward Gaming at Valorant Champions 2023 (Image via Riot Games)

EDward Gaming are coming into VCT Masters Madrid 2024 as the champions from China. The undisputed best team in Chinese Valorant will return to the international stage with the same five players that viewers have been accustomed to. Fans can prepare to see ZmjjKK show off his flair once again while the rest of his team remains stalwart and highly capable of battling against the top.

However, as reiterated earlier, the level of gameplay shown during the China Kickoff event was subpar and easily the weakest out of all four leagues. EDward Gaming are known to be slightly lenient while playing domestically. Still, they will have to step up and maintain their international pedigree at VCT Masters Madrid 2024 against a wave of new teams in the mixture.

EDward Gaming's roster is:

Guo "Haodong" Haodong (IGL)
Wan "CHICHOO" Shunzhi
Wang "nobody" Senxu
Zheng "ZmjjKK" Yongkang
Zhang "Smoggy" Zhao
Lo "AfteR" Wen-hsin (Head Coach)

6) Gen.G

Gen.G at Pacific Kickoff (Image via Riot Games)

If Gen.G winning Pacific is not the biggest surprise on the list, you know that we are in for a treat at VCT Masters Madrid 2024. Not many viewers expected the Korean roster to make it to the first international event of the year over the likes of DRX and T1. Their triumph against Paper Rex, on the back of players like t3xture and rookie Controller Karon, further adds to their reputation as one of the best teams.

However, the players of Gen.G have historically faltered when it comes to international tournaments. Additionally, the lack of global experience for Karon will be an important factor. While Gen.G have a fantastic chance to make a deep run at VCT Masters Madrid 2024, they also have an equal chance of faltering at the first hurdle.

Gen.G's roster is:

Kim "Meteor" Tae-o
Kim "t3xture" Na-ra
Kim "Lakia" Jong-min
Byeon "Munchkin" Sang-beom
Kim "Karon" Won-tae
Kang "solo" Keun-chul

5) Paper Rex

Paper Rex at Pacific Kickoff (Image via Riot Games)

Paper Rex have become a household name in the international scene. VCT Masters Madrid 2024 will mark the team's eighth international appearance for the Pacific squad. While the team could not win the Pacific Kickoff event, they showcased solid gameplay in their victories against Gen.G in the Group Stage and T1 in the Playoffs Stage.

Paper Rex, due to the absence of Jinggg, have undeniably regressed a bit. Monyet also did not have the most impressive showing, and this paints a worrying sign for the team heading into VCT Masters Madrid 2024. Paper Rex still boasts a vast amount of international experience and their first matchup against EDward Gaming is a battle they have historically won.

Paper Rex's roster is:

Aaron "mindfreak" Leonhart
Jason "f0rsakeN" Susanto
Khalish "d4v41" Rusyaidee
Cahya "Monyet" Nugraha
Ilya "something" Petrov
Alexandre "alecks" Sallé (Coach)

4) Team Heretics

Team Heretics at EMEA Kickoff (Image via Riot Games)

Team Heretics have been a massive surprise in EMEA for viewers since they had to play the EMEA Kickoff event with paTiTek instead of Wo0t due to the latter not being old enough to play. Expectations were pretty low for the team, but they have subverted all these doubts and shocked the audience with explosive aggression and incredible set plays.

The man of the hour for this team has been Duelist MiniBoo. The Lithuanian phenom's aim and mechanical prowess on Agents such as Neon and Raze have been exceptional. RieNs and benjyfishy have also stood out by getting important frags in crucial scenarios. Team Heretics are the hometown favorites at VCT Masters Madrid 2024, and they are looking to go all the way in the tournament.

Team Heretics' roster is:

Ricardas "Boo" Lukaševičius (IGL)
Dominykas "MiniBoo" Lukaševičius
Enes "RieNss" Ecirli
Benjy "benjyfishy" Fish
Patryk "paTiTek" Fabrowski
Neil "neilzinho" Finlay (Head Coach)

3) LOUD

LOUD at Americas Kickoff (Image via Riot Games)

Despite losing superstar Duelist aspas LOUD have remained a top-tier team in the Americas region. The newest recruit, qck, has slotted in smoothly into Saadhak's system as the Brazilians look to carve a new era in their incredible history in Valorant. Sentinel player Less has consistently been one of the best players in the world, and he continues to maintain this extraordinary form.

While LOUD did falter against Sentinels in the grand finals of the Americas kickoff, the contest was a close 2-3 loss, with Less having a particularly quiet series. LOUD have more than enough firepower to be regarded as the best team in the world, and Saadhak will look to lead this new-look LOUD at VCT Masters Madrid 2024 to international success as he always does with any roster.

LOUD's roster is:

Gabriel "qck" Lima
Felipe "Less" Basso
Matias "Saadhak" Delipetro (IGL)
Cauan "cauanzin" Pereira
Arthur "tuyz" Vieira
Pedro "peu" Lopes (Head Coach)

2) Sentinels

Sentinels at Americas Kickoff (Image via Riot Games)

The poster child of North American Valorant has finally returned to a VCT Masters event. VCT Masters Madrid 2024 will be the first Masters event for Sentinels after Masters Berlin back in 2021. There have been plenty of changes ever since then, and the current iteration of Sentinels might be the best they have ever had as they managed to beat LOUD 3-2 to win the Americas Kickoff event.

TenZ, the only player who was a part of the 2021 roster, has found his groove in the Controller and Initiator role. Players like zekken and sacy also performed strongly. The team as a whole, led by johnqt, has been cohesive and strong, with an elite map pool as well. With all these in consideration, Sentinels are heading into VCT Masters Madrid 2024 as one of the heavy favorites.

Sentinels' roster is:

Mohamed Amine "johnqt" Ouraid (IGL)
Tyson "Tenz" Ngo
Zachary "zekken" Patrone
Gustavo "Sacy" Rossi
Jordan "Zellsis" Montemurro
Adam "kaplan" Kaplan (Coach)

1) Karmine Corp

Karmine Corp at EMEA Kickoff (Image via Riot Games)

From being memed as one of the worst teams in the world in 2023, Karmine Corp may have assembled the new EMEA superteam in 2024. A roster consisting of up-and-coming rookies with a veteran IGL in Magnum, Karmine Corp have looked absolutely monstrous in every aspect of Valorant. The team's strategies, mechanical prowess, clutching ability, and aim are pristine.

The core of N4RRATE, marteen, and sh1n have been exceptional to observe. The addition of head coach ENGH, who formerly coached Gambit Esports, has infinitely bolstered this roster's strategic ability.

Karmine Corp deservedly won the EMEA Kickoff event by taking down popular names such as Fnatic, Team Heretics, and FUT Esports. VCT Masters Madrid 2024 could be the first event that marks the start of the Karmine Corp era.

Karmine Corp's roster is: