Possible Impact of VCT Change on Teams and Valorant Focus Shift According to Report

According to a report by Sheep Esports, Riot Games intends to reduce its incentive program for VCT international league teams in regards to content creation. Instead, the company will shift its focus towards generating revenue through in-game cosmetic sales.

VCT teams receive multiple revenue streams from Riot Games as they are selected by the developer to represent its four international leagues.

Funds for esports organizations are generated through a combination of a fixed stipend, an incentive program, and a portion of the profits earned from the sale of their team-specific cosmetic bundles and the Valorant Champions bundle within the game.

The incentive structure included a component that was based on the team’s VCT content and co-stream viewership. As a result, teams started signing content creators to co-stream their games and also brought on editors and designers to assist with creating videos and managing social media presence.

Two people co-streaming Valorant like Challengers League Polaris — Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games

Valorant Esports embraced co-streamers from the start and has seen high-viewership numbers thanks to its success.

According to Sheep Esports, Riot Games has reportedly reduced the potential payout for VCT teams to a maximum of $400,000 for meeting content creation goals. Riot has confirmed that it modifies its payment system for VCT annually, with a current focus on increasing in-game item sales for the year 2025.

“According to a statement from a spokesperson at Riot, the teams are experiencing tremendous success, which can be attributed to the support and generosity of our fans. As a result, we anticipate a significant increase in the overall amount of money being paid to teams by Riot, consistent with the growth seen over the last three years.”

According to reports, certain VCT teams are dissatisfied with the sudden announcement of the change and the assurance from Riot that next year’s competition will still be fair, despite the absence of $400,000 worth of content incentives.

Current regional #VCT Team Capsule standings!Support your favorite team before they go away September 12th, 2024. pic.twitter.com/zKwsluQX47

— VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) August 6, 2024

Despite not disclosing the sales figures for the VCT cosmetic bundles on a global scale or for individual teams, Riot Games has shared the rankings of the top-selling VCT team bundles throughout the season. Across the four regions, Sentinels, Paper Rex, Fnatic, and EDward Gaming have emerged as the top-selling teams. This information was posted by the developer on their official website.

The effects on co-streamers and behind-the-scenes content workers for these organizations are yet to be determined. Esports organizations are still recovering from a period of layoffs, where numerous employees lost their jobs due to a decrease in outside investment. Additionally, these organizations continue to struggle in generating profits, as highlighted in the Digiday Guide to Esports Winter.