VALORANT Champions 2026 to be held in Shanghai

Riot Games has officially announced that the VALORANT Champions 2026 will be held in Shanghai, China. The announcement was initially confirmed on the official VALORANT China account, marking a return to the city that hosted the VCT Masters in 2024 at the Mercedes-Benz Arena. The exact venue and tournament schedule are yet to be confirmed.

This marks the first time China will host the VALORANT World Cup, after the competition was held in Berlin (2021), Istanbul (2022), Los Angeles (2023), Seoul (2024) and Paris (2025). The 2025 edition of Champions will bring together the top 16 teams from the VALORANT Regional Leagues, who will compete at Les Arènes and the Accor Arena between September and October to determine the 2025 VCT champion.

Earlier last year, Riot Games also announced that VCT 2027 would return to the Americas, although the host country has not yet been confirmed.

The rise of VALORANT in China

Due to its huge eSports fan base and large number of players, China has always been a key market for competitions and face-to-face events. In addition to VALORANT Champions next year, China will also host the League of Legends Worlds 2025, which will be held in Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu.

After the incredible success of Masters Shanghai 2024, with a packed Mercedes-Benz Arena, record crowds and a city bursting with energy, we knew we had to come back.

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VALORANT Champions will also include activations on the streets of Shanghai, a practice Riot Games has employed at recent esports events in the country, including last year’s Mid-Season Invitational.

That event proved what we had always believed: Shanghai is not only ready, it has everything it needs to host the biggest annual event on the VCT calendar. Champions 2026 will deliver the highest level of VALORANT competition, while once again highlighting the passion of the local VCT CN crowd. These are the fans who supported local heroes like Edward Gaming, Wolves and other emerging teams.

Riot Games