Why Is the Introduction of Valorant Esports in China So Important?

The esports industry has been on a massive upswing in recent years and two of the most important parts of this trend have come together in the last year. The Valorant game and the Chinese esports market look like they could form a perfect combination, but what can we expect from them in the future?

The Latest News and Current Situation

This subject grabbed our attention last year when Riot Games announced that Valorant would finally hit the Chinese market – three years after its release elsewhere – with their parent company Tencent Games managing the release in the Asian country. The reason for this delay is that it wasn’t until the end of 2022 that the Chinese government approved a license for the game to be allowed there.

With Valorant now fully legal in China, this has meant that esports tournaments featuring it can be officially played in the country. In fact, at the time of launch in June 2023, Riot’s COO Whalen Rozelle pointed out that they were hoping to welcome China to the following year’s Valorant Champions Tour, known as the VCT.

Well, their hopes turned out to be well-placed, as it’s now been announced that the Valorant Champions Tour campaign will begin in China as early as February 2024. The first event is the VCT 2024: China KICK-OFF tournament, which allows two teams from the country to qualify for the VCT Madrid Masters, from a field of 11.

The History of Valorant in Esports

Valorant is one of the best eSport games in history. But alongside, there are Dota 2, CS2, and League of Legends. Every game has its own history and an amazing tournament mode that brings talented players across the globe. The given Valorant betting odds at Thunderpick Valorant showcase leading teams like Team Vitality and Global Esports in the Convergence 2023 event, taking the tournament to a whole new level. But non-players can also bet on the results of the tournament or, more specifically, bets on kills and maps situations.

Valorant was released in 2020 with the main aim of serving eSports tournaments from the very beginning. Valorant was initially inspired by the Counter-Strike series, as this was a leading brand in esports in 2014-15. But developers came up with a great idea to provide players with a team knock-off with 5 players.  

Valorant marked a successful opening since its launch as more than 1.7 M viewers across the world on its first stream. Many players are searching the internet for ways to get better at Valorant, just to improve their skills and play Valorant competitively to pursue sport as a career and make a living.

China’s Place in the Pro Gaming World

With the recent surge in exports, China has become the fourth regional VCT, along with the America, Pacific, and EMEA regions. After this news, Valorant is predicted to become the leading eSports game very soon. There is also another news that the Chinese government forced Blizzard games out of the Chinese market. 

Moreover, China is the single biggest esports market; approximately $10.6 billion was generated single-handed in the first 6 months of 2023. They revealed this amount live at the Global E-sports Conference in Shanghai.

China has a vast player pool as they have a population of approximately 1.4 billion. Its pro sports scene grows exponentially. LGD is widely regarded as China’s most successful esports team to date, with their biggest wins beginning in 2009 under their original name of For the Dream. The VCT in 2024 will see ten partner teams – with Bilibili Gaming, JD Gaming, and FunPlus Phoenix already confirmed – taking part together with one qualifier.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, it seems certain that the Valorant esports competitions in China will be an enormous success and boost this market further by drawing in new players and viewers. The game is also a proven winner in the esports world, and the giant market in China should mean that we get to see exciting games between top-notch teams.

Steve

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