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VCT has played a significant part in growing the player base for Valorant. Teams from all over the world get a chance to compete on the biggest stage and represent their region. VCT has also given female and other marginalized gendered pros to show their skills through the Game Changers event. However, VCT 2023 has taken a different turn.
In 2023, franchising was introduced in Valorant Esports. Here, orgs got to be partnered directly with Riot Games to compete in their official leagues. Many orgs didn't make it to franchising which left the fate of the Tier 2 Valorant pro scene very questionable.
Due to this, Valorant Esports was then divided into two separate leagues. The franchised teams would have their own league, whereas the non-franchised teams would compete through the Challengers League to make it to Ascension.
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In Ascension, teams would then compete against other teams from the same region. The winning team would get franchised and compete in their league. The Ascension event has shown promise, and many teams look like they can give tough competition to the franchised teams.
Below is a list of the top five Ascension teams that can make it to VCT's franchised league.
Note: This article is subjective and solely reflects the writer's opinions.
The Guard, Apeks, and three more Ascension teams that can qualify for VCT franchised league
1) The Guard
The Guard is an NA team that competes in the Americas region. In 2022, The Guard skyrocketed their name in the Valorant community. The rookie team conquered NA very quickly and even qualified for an international event. Players like trent and sayaplayer became one of the most popular names in VCT.
Unfortunately, The Guard didn't make it to franchising. Most of the team decided to stick together and compete in the Challengers League. The Guard absolutely dominated the Challengers League in both Splits and made their way to Americas Ascension. They are among the favorites to make it to VCT Americas League and are even considered better than some franchised teams.
2) Apeks
Apeks is a Northern European team that competes in the EMEA region. The team is mostly filled with players who were formerly in Fnatic. Apeks has created a lot of buzz in the EMEA region. The team was able to absolutely destroy their competition in Split 1 and Split 2 of their Challengers League.
In the EMEA Ascension event, Apeks has had a phenomenal run in the Group Stage. Led by their IGL (In-game Leader), Enzo, the team has a good chance of making it to the VCT EMEA League. Apeks are amongst the favorites in the EMEA tier 2 scene to make it to franchising.
3) BLEED
BLEED is a Singaporean team that competes in the Pacific region. BLEED has created many waves in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region since the beginning of Valorant. They were amongst the top teams in APAC but would unfortunately just fall short of making it to the Masters events.
With some of the top APAC teams going into the franchised league, many expect BLEED to be the team that goes to the VCT Pacific League. BLEED was able to blast through the Challengers League effortlessly and has been putting up a great performance in the Ascension event so far.
4) M80
M80 is an NA team that competes in the Americas region. This a newly formed team for the Challengers League. It comprises players from teams like Version1, Ghost Gaming, and NRG Esports. M80 was considered to be amongst the strongest teams going into the Challengers League in NA.
M80 breezed past its NA competition and finished first place in Split 1 and third place in Split 2. During the Playoffs stage, the team had a clean run and only lost a single map throughout. They have continued their performance in the Ascension event so far and are also expected to make it to the VCT Americas League.
5) SAW
SAW is a Portuguese team that competes in the EMEA region. The team had an amazing run in their Challengers League. They finished in first place in both Split 1 and Split 2.
SAW has been a surprise coming into the Ascension event. They have performed incredibly well against the other EMEA teams in the Group Stage and are now being considered in the running for the slot in VCT EMEA League. SAW's success in this event shows great promise from Portugal for future events.
