The US$1,250,000 Esports World Cup event for VALORANT is ready to get underway on July 8-13.
SAUDI ARABIA – The stage is set for the Esports World Cup VALORANT event, taking place July 8-13 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with a total prize pool of US$1,250,000 up for grabs.
Sixteen teams will make the trip to Riyadh after VALORANT Masters Toronto. The competition will begin with a group stage from July 8-10, where the teams will be split into four groups of four. Each group will compete in a double-elimination format, with all matches played in a best-of-three series.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the single-elimination playoffs, which will take place from July 11-13, culminating in the crowning of the Esports World Cup VALORANT champion.
ALSO READ: Motiv Esports sign Spin and Benkai to coaching staff
Each region (Pacific, CN, Americas, EMEA) has been allocated four slots for the tournament:
- Two slots were awarded to the top-performing teams from Stage 1.
- The remaining two slots were decided through regional qualifiers, featuring teams ranked 3rd to 12th from Stage 1.
For the Pacific region, RRQ and Gen.G emerged as the top two teams in VCT Pacific Stage 1, directly securing their tickets to Riyadh. Meanwhile, the ACL 2025 EWC Pacific Qualifier served as the final battleground for the remaining spots, where seasoned international contenders Paper Rex and DRX punched their tickets to the Esports World Cup.
Over in China, unexpected names Xi Lai Gaming and Bilibili Gaming rose to the top in Stage 1 and earned direct qualification. They will be joined by EDward Gaming and Titan Esports Club, qualifying through the CN Evolution Series Act 2 x EWC CN Qualifier.
The Americas region will be represented by a mix of seasoned giants and rising challengers all from North America. G2 Esports and Sentinels claimed the top two spots in VCT Americas Stage 1, while NRG and 100 Thieves battled their way through the Americas EWC Qualifier to complete the region’s lineup.
Rounding out the sixteen teams, EMEA will field a stacked lineup of familiar names. FNATIC and Team Heretics qualified through their strong finishes in Stage 1, while BBL Esports and Karmine Corp made their return to the international spotlight by winning their way through the EMEA Qualifier.
- Pacific
- RRQ
- Gen.G
- Paper Rex
- DRX
- CN
- XLG
- Bilibili Gaming
- EDward Gaming
- Titan Esports Club
- Americas
- G2 Esports
- Sentinels
- NRG Esports
- 100 Thieves
- EMEA
- FNATIC
- Team Heretics
- BBL Esports
- Karmine Corp
With 25 tournaments in 24 games announced to date, including four new games—Chess, Crossfire, FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves and VALORANT—EWC 2025 will bring together more than 2,000 elite esports players and 200 top Clubs for the largest multi-game competition in history, with a life-changing prize pool rewarding more players and Clubs on the world’s biggest stage.
The total $70+ million prize pool is allocated across the Club Championship, Game Championships, MVP Awards, and EWC Qualifiers. Out of this, $27 million is dedicated to the EWC Club Championship — an innovative cross-game format that rewards the top 16 Clubs for their performance across multiple titles, with $7 million reserved for the 2025 champion. Game Championships will feature their own prize pools, totaling over $38 million combined, while standout players will compete for a share of the $450,000 MVP Award pool.
The 2024 event attracted over 500 million online viewers and 2.6 million visitors to Riyadh’s Boulevard City. At the inaugural EWC in 2024, Team Falcons captured the world’s attention, running up the leaderboard with 10 top-three finishes, including three first-place placements, to earn 5,665 points and ultimately win the $7 million Club Championship title. North American Team Liquid finished in second place with 2,545 points and French Team BDS placed third with 2,000 points.
For more insights on the Asian VALORANT scene and upcoming content like this, be sure to like and follow VALO2ASIA on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.
Cover photo courtesy of Esports World Cup
