Bren Esports have been forced to pull out of Masters 3: Berlin due to visa issues. With no replacement team issued by Riot Games, the event will be pivoted to a 15-team competition.
In a statement issued on Friday night, The VALORANT Champions Tour announced the saddening news. Bren Esports had earlier applied for their visas but have not yet received confirmation on their status. Despite their and the organizers’ best attempt to rectify the situation, the team was unable to meet the time frame for acquiring the visa documents necessary, and therefore, will not have enough time to attend VCT Masters: Berlin. The Berlin stop is set to begin on September 10, 2021.
Riot Games have issued a tournament-structure change. The 2021 VALORANT Champions Tour Stage 3 – Masters: Berlin will run as a 15-team tournament, the details of which were made clear in the announcement below:
Headlined by five of the Philippines’ best talents, Bren Esports had qualified for a spot in Masters 3: Berlin after defeating Indonesia’s Alter Ego in a 3-0 fashion in the lower final and ultimately winning the VCT Stage 3 – SEA Challengers Playoffs, beating Singaporean rival Paper Rex in the grand final, 3-0.
“We’ve been busy completing our requirements for visas this week. Our appointment is set for August 30th and 31st.” said Gilbert “Gibo” Sales Jr. to VALO2ASIA on August 26.
Visa issues are no stranger to the Asian scene following several cases in the past, including Paper Rex’s Khalish “d4v41” Rusyaidee’s difficulty in obtaining a Malaysian Travel Pass necessary for international travel, which was fortunately resolved.
ALSO READ: Bren Esports VALORANT on the mental health coach impact to the team, Filipino community, and more
As a result, Paper Rex are left as the sole representative of Southeast Asia heading into Masters 3: Berlin. Bren Esports will be awarded 175 VCT points and the associated prize for qualifying into Masters Berlin.
Because the team currently sits on par with Paper Rex on the official VCT Circuit points, Bren Esports still have a chance of a direct qualification to the VCT Champions at the end of the year, barring a group exit from Paper Rex at VCT Masters Berlin.
VALORANT Masters: Berlin will take place from September 10-19, featuring 15 teams from seven regional Challengers at Berlin’s Verti Music Hall, Germany. The tournament will consist of GSL style group play, followed by an eight-team single elimination bracket. In light of the new announcement, Group D (which featured Bren Esports), will pivot to a double-round robin, with the top two teams qualifying for the single-elimination playoffs. No other group will be impacted.
The full team list for the competition is now as follows:
| 🇷🇺 Gambit Esports | 🇧🇷 Vivo Keyd |
| 🇹🇷 Super Massive Blaze | 🇧🇷 Havan Liberty |
| 🇪🇺 Acend | 🇰🇷 F4Q |
| 🇪🇺 G2 Esports | 🇰🇷 Vision Strikers |
| 🇺🇸 Sentinels | 🇯🇵 Zeta Division |
| 🇺🇸 100 Thieves | 🇯🇵 Crazy Raccoon |
| 🇺🇸 Team Envy | 🇨🇱 KRÜ Esports |
| 🇸🇬 Paper Rex |
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