Austin to stage VALORANT Champions for first time in 2027

Riot Games has confirmed that Austin will host VALORANT Champions for the first time in 2027, closing a season with more than 50 tournaments across 15 cities. The Game Changers Championship will also conclude in Austin, with both events scheduled from September 16 to October 10.

The 2027 VALORANT Champions Tour calendar covers Open Qualifiers, Kickoff, Cups, Masters and Champions, with more than $7m in prize money planned. Regional tournaments will take place across multiple cities and countries rather than at a single location.

The 2027 schedule

Regional Kickoff events will run from January 14 to February 7 in São Paulo, Berlin, Bangkok and Hangzhou. The first Masters event follows in Seoul from February 20 to March 3.

Cup 1 is scheduled for April 29 to May 23 in Mexico City, Warsaw, Manila and Wuhan. A second Masters event will take place in Valencia from June 5 to 20, before Cup 2 visits Rio de Janeiro, Istanbul, Tokyo and Shanghai from August 5 to 29.

The Austin events will bring the international calendar to a close. The schedule, reported by Sheep Esports and TheSpike.gg on October 15, gives teams, sponsors and broadcasters the dates and host cities ahead of the season.

Open Qualifiers offer another route

The first Open Qualifiers will begin in November 2026 and provide a route into Kickoff. Across EMEA, Americas and Pacific, partner teams will receive direct entry only to their respective regional Kickoff events; they must then compete with Open Qualifier teams for places at later events.

Chinese partner and visitor organisations will instead receive invitations to Kickoff and Cups under the regional structure. Anna Donlon, Head of VALORANT Studios, and Leo Faria, Global Head of VALORANT Esports, described the Opens as an opportunity for emerging competitors to face established players and for local champions to advance.

Support available as teams advance

Teams reaching Kickoff or a Cup through Open Qualifiers will receive $100,000 for each event. Teams reaching Masters will receive $200,000, while an open team qualifying for Champions will receive $400,000 in support. Every team at the Game Changers Championship will receive $100,000.

Those payments can accompany open teams through multiple stages; the reported plan says one could receive more than $1m over a strong season. The November qualifiers will be the first step towards filling the 2027 Kickoff fields, ahead of the international events and the season-ending championships in Austin.