Riot has released its season primer for the 2026 VCT Pacific season, giving a full preview with a region that has two new teams, a new Kickoff format, and a Stage 2 that will give Challengers teams the opportunity to compete at Champions.

The 2026 VCT Pacific field. The 2026 VCT Pacific field.

The teams participating in VCT Pacific in 2026 are:

New in 2026

The 2026 VCT Pacific field will welcome two new organizations, with FULL SENSE FULL SENSE Asia-Pacific Rank #3 Leviathan Thanyathon Nakmee Killua Tanate Teerasawad thyy Anupong Preamsak primmie Papaphat Sriprapha JitBoyS Jittana Nokngam replacing TALON TALON Inactive Killua Tanate Teerasawad thyy Anupong Preamsak Crws Thanamethk Mahatthananuyut JitBoyS Jittana Nokngam primmie Papaphat Sriprapha as a partnered org. Additionally, the Pacific Ascension gauntlet has brought back Nongshim RedForce Nongshim RedForce Korea Rank #1 Xross Jeonghwan (정환) Rb Goo Sang-min (구상민) Francis Kim Mu-bin (김무빈) Dambi Lee Hyuk-kyu (이혁규) Ivy Park Sung-hyeon (박성현) for its second year in VCT, with winners SLT Seongnam SLT Seongnam Korea Rank #4 set to compete under the VARREL VARREL Japan Rank #11 C1ndeR Ko Jae-hyuk (고재혁) Klaus Kim Min-hyuk (김민혁) XuNa Kim Tae-geon (김태건) oonzmlp Shin Sang-beom (신상범) Zexy Jang Suk-hyun (장석현) banner.

This year, teams participating in their respective Challengers circuits now have a path to qualifying for Champions through the VCT Pacific Stage 2 playoffs. Championship points return in 2026, with the top two teams on the points leaderboard qualifying for Champions, along with the top two teams from the Stage 2 playoffs.

Kickoff

The 2026 Pacific Kickoff bracket. The 2026 Pacific Kickoff bracket.

Pacific Kickoff will take place from January 22 to February 15, and for the first time ever, the event has been restructured to be a triple elimination bracket. Teams will have three strikes before they are eliminated, and will fight for the region's three slots to qualify for the season's first international event, Masters Santiago.

At Kickoff, the region's four representatives at Champions Paris will receive a first-round bye in the Upper Bracket, while the rest of the teams have been placed via a random draw.

The new format provides teams with more playing time, ensuring three games are played, and reduces the downtime between Kickoff and Stage 1.

Stage 1

Stage 1 will run from April 3 to May 17, and will follow a similar format to 2025, with two groups of six teams playing a round robin with best-of-three matches within their group. The top four teams from the group stage will advance to the Stage 1 playoffs.

In the playoffs, the eight remaining teams will compete in a best-of-three double-elimination bracket, with best-of-five matches played out in the Lower Final and Grand Final. The top seed from each group will earn a first-round bye in the Upper Bracket, while the fourth-placed teams will begin their playoff runs in the lower bracket.

The top 3 teams from Stage 1 playoffs will qualify for Masters London, the second international event of the year.

Stage 2

The path to Champions Shanghai. The path to Champions Shanghai.

Stage 2 will run from July 16 to September 6, and will again have two groups of six teams. The top two teams from each group will qualify directly to the Stage 2 playoffs, while the remaining eight teams, comprising of teams placed third to sixth in the group, will move to the Play-In stage. At the Play-In, they will be joined by four teams from the region's Challengers leagues to compete in a double-elimination bracket. The third and fourth-placed teams from each group will earn a first-round bye in the upper bracket. The top four teams from the Play-Ins will advance to the Stage 2 playoffs.

The final eight teams will battle through a best-of-three double-elimination bracket, with best-of-five matches played during the Lower Final and Grand Final. The top-placing teams from the Stage 2 group stage will receive first-round byes in the upper bracket, while the third and fourth-placed teams from the play-ins start in the lower bracket.

At the end of Stage 2, the top two teams will advance to Champions 2026, where they will be joined by the top two teams that qualify via Championship Points.

Schedule

The full schedule for VCT Pacific 2026 is as follows:

  • Kickoff: January 22 to February 15
  • Stage 1: April 3 to May 17
  • Stage 2: July 16 to September 6

Matches will begin at 15:00 GMT+7 // 16:00 GMT+8 // 17:00 GMT+9 each matchday.

Where to watch

VCT Pacific Kickoff action will be broadcast through local language broadcasts on SOOP, Twitch, YouTube, Chzzk, and other platforms.