VCT 2026: China Kickoff
VCT 2026: China Kickoff is the first competition of the season for professional players in "Valorant" in China. It featured the new "triple elimination" format and showcased strong tactical matches that tested the teams' flexibility, ability to manage round economies, and control of the maps.
Format
The tournament culminates in a rigorous Triple-Elimination bracket, designed to thoroughly test team endurance and strategic depth. Match lengths are scaled according to the progression of the bracket:
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Standard Rounds: All initial bracket fixtures are contested as a Best-of-Three (Bo3) series.
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Championship Finals: The Upper Bracket Final, Mid Bracket Final, and Lower Bracket Final transition to an extended Best-of-Five (Bo5) format to determine the definitive regional contenders.
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Seeding Advantage: Organizations that successfully qualified for Champions Paris are granted a competitive bypass, receiving a direct bye into Round 2 of the Upper Bracket.
Pre-Match Technical Regulations: Skirmish Side Selection
Map veto advantages and potential seeding ties are decided via an isolated, skill-based pre-match protocol:
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Representative Selection: Prior to the commencement of any match, each roster must officially submit a single starting player to represent their organization.
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Combat Specifications: Selected representatives compete in a synchronized 1v1 matchup utilizing the in-game Skirmish mode. To isolate pure mechanical execution, all character abilities are strictly disabled, restricting combat entirely to standard firearms.
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Victory Condition & Advantage: The first competitor to secure five round victories claims the Skirmish. The winning player grants their organization the strategic authority to choose their placement as either the starting team or the secondary team within the official Map Veto sequence.