Is the Upper Bracket Advantage in VCT Too OP?

#1

TonyB034268

INTRODUCTION
In the VCT's current playoff format, teams entering the Grand Finals from the Upper Bracket receive a significant set of advantages, both structurally and strategically. While rewarding excellence is important, we must ask: has the format gone too far in favoring unbeaten teams?

What the Upper Bracket Teams Get
As we all know, the teams coming to the Grand Finals of the VCT events will have a lot of advantage, including:

Being able to ban 2 maps
Being able to pick map 1 and map 3 (which are crucial in a BO5)
Having more time to prepare and anti-strats by watching the other teams in the Grand Finals getting through a BO5 in the Lower Finals.

What the Lower Bracket Teams Face
On the other hand, the teams coming from the Lower Finals have to:

Win an additional match in the Lower Bracket.
Spend a lot of time and show strategies in a BO5 in the Lower Final.
Face 5 maps that were decided by the opponent.
Face the snowball in map 1 and map 3 picked by the opponent.
Almost have no time (< 24 hours before the Grand Finals) to prepare.

Case studies
There were some great examples for this:

PRX vs FNC (Masters Toronto 2025):
- PRX could ban their auto - ban map (Haven) and a map that they were not very good at, but FNC was (Ascent)
- PRX could also pick Sunset and Pearl for map 1 and map 3 (FNC 2 auto - ban maps) in a BO5.
- PRX had more time to rest and could watch FNC going through a BO5 vs Wolves.
FNC vs EG (Masters Tokyo 2023):
- FNC could ban their auto - ban map (Pearl) and EG's best map (Fracture).
PRX vs EG (Champions LA 2023):
- PRX could ban their auto - ban map (Haven) and EG's best map (Fracture).

The Counterpoint: "They Earned It"
Of course, we can also argue that:

The teams winning from the Upper Finals deserve this much advantage because they went undefeated in the playoffs.
There were some exceptions:
- The teams from the Lower Brackets still won the trophy despite facing that much disadvantage:
  1. OPTC (Masters Reykjavík 2022)
  2. FPX (Masters Copenhagen 2022)
  3. EG (Champions Los Angeles 2023)
  4. SEN (Masters Madrid 2024)
  5. T1 (Masters Bangkok 2025)
- There have been 3 - 0 series even though the Lower Bracket teams were able to pick the second map (FNC vs EG)

Balance should be found
However, I still think that the teams that come from the Lower Bracket shouldn't have to deal with that many problems, even though they lost 1 match in the playoffs and we can definitely change the format a little bit without removing all of the crucial advantages that the flawless teams in the playoffs coming to Grand Finals deserve.

Suggested Fixes
My solution would be either:

Let the teams from the Lower Finals pick map 1 and map 3.
Delay the schedule by 1 day so that the teams coming from the Lower Brackets can have more time.
So that there will be more chances for the teams from the Lower Bracket, but can still keep what the teams from the Upper Finals should have to make the Grand Finals more exciting and fair.

CONCLUSION
This has been a big problem for a while in Esports in other games, and we might think of being familiar with it, but I think we can still find the best way to improve this because VCT is growing pretty well and promisingly.
What are your thoughts about this?

#2

Hynix

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it's fine as it is

#3

SuperRoss

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i was thinking that too but i can't say it because i'm from emea

#16

TonyB034268

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To be honest, I was part of the minority who wanted FNC to win their 3rd VCT trophy, even though I knew what PRX had to go through (but PRX won so they deserved it and congratulations PRX), but I still wanted to bring this up since this came up to my mind in Masters Tokyo back in 2023.

#18

SuperRoss

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it's the unfortunate issue with a system where playoff teams have a lower bracket to fall back on

with a direct elimination bracket this problem doesn't exist and we get fairer finals
(not that i want to take anything away from the upper bracket teams that have won in the past)

however that brings other (solvable) problems

#20

TonyB034268

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Interesting, but valid point right there

#33

MR_PEABODY

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Agree

#4

Kirako

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t1 won masters bangkok 2025 not shanghai 2024
pls fix

#MVGA

#6

TonyB034268

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Thank you mate

#5

trikecycle

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allat
nah

#7

sideshowsbaldhead

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chatgpt essay 🥀

#8

TonyB034268

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Nah bro, I tried my best 'cause I thought I needed to write an article lmao

#11

shaggyboy1030

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ignore them they are brainrot kids they need someone to make them understand while a video of subway surfers plays under

#9

Galactc

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It's the exact opposite tbh extra ban is so useless

#10

TonyB034268

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To be fair bro, imagine you can ban your 2 worst maps or ban your worst map and then your opponent's best map =))

#21

Galactc

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I guess but this is a grand final I don't quite think they need their best map to win and should know enough about your best map to at least keep up

#22

TonyB034268

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I respect your opinion bro

#12

shaggyboy1030

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I agree with the 2nd solution they can or rather should provide atleast one extra day before the GF for a little prep as the upper finals team already gets 2 days they won't mind getting 3 ......
But the 1st solution, although i understand where you are coming from but that might be a little bit of disadvantage towards the upper team which shouldn't be the case ...... the lower finals team should get a better chance but not a advantage over the other.

Btw, you wrote this in a very well-mannered and understandable way

#13

TonyB034268

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Appreciate it man, VCT VN did it today so I thought about it.

#14

zephyrara

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it is not in fact op because its just if ur lucky enough to have a different map pool from ur opponent. for example prx vs eg, their map pools were extremely similar so the 2 bans wasnt an insane advantage. meanwhile vs fnatic, the map pool was so in favour of fnc that they effectively started off 2-0. so its only situationally broken. and its designed to give the upper bracket teams a benefit too

#15

TonyB034268

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Understand your point, mate

#17

KRATOSmimir21

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Forgot sen in Madrid

#19

TonyB034268

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Thank you mate

#23

Aths

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"Let the teams from the Lower Finals pick map 1 and map 3" — so you want to shift the disadvantage to the upper bracket team?

#24

TonyB034268

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To be fair, I think that those teams from the Upper Brackets were the ones who decided which 5 maps would be played already, so probably the orders won't make that much advantage for the Lower Brackets teams, but I got your point.
I know that people will say it, so I included one more solution, which was giving the teams from the Lower Brackets at least more time.

#28

cameran

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some teams start colder, so having teams choose 1st maps can help a lot more to "warm up" without burning a map pick (fnatic sometimes, sen),
though that is just speculation and obviously upper teams having 1st map will def help regardless

#25

catNmouse

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It’s fine as it is

#26

cameran

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I dont think its as op as people think tbh

#27

Anguibok

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Lets look at the 2 solutions :

• Let the teams from the Lower Finals pick map 1 and map 3.
I do like this idea, but i’m not sure that change that mush. Do we really have data on « Face the snowball in map 1 and map 3 picked by the opponent » is really accurate ?

• Delay the schedule by 1 day so that the teams coming from the Lower Brackets can have more time.
Not possible sadfully, the 2 last game end on a weekend so anyone can watch it, it would be a waste to not plan a game on a saturday

I kinda like the fact we givea huge advantage to the team form winner bracket

#29

Anguibok

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Also, I need to go more in depth and give some counterargument on some point :

Being able to ban 2 maps
I agree this is an advantage
Being able to pick map 1 and map 3 (which are crucial in a BO5)
Are we really sure this is an advantage ? Who does pick the side in game 5 ? I'm not really sure and I didnt find anything but isn't this

Winner bracket team pick map 1 so looser pick side
Looser bracket team pick map 2 so winner pick side
Winner bracket team pick map 3 so looser pick side
Looser bracket team pick map 4 so winner pick side
Map 5 remain, and if we alternate does that mean that looser bracket pick side ? (Need to be check i'm not sure)
Is that regard isn't looser bracket team that have the advantage to pick 3 side (Wish is a way more biggest advantage than picking map first since side is way more important)
Having more time to prepare and anti-strats by watching the other teams in the Grand Finals getting through a BO5 in the Lower Finals.
True, but we also need to keep in mind that the team that play more is way more ready than the team that just wait (First seed curse in 12 team bracket)

My first though was "Yeah we need to let the team that come from looser bracket pick map 1 and 3", and I still think it's a good idea, but i'm afraid it's hurt more than it help if that end by picking one less side

Still really good debate opening tho !

#30

cameran

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lower bracket team has map 5 side pick yeah

#32

TonyB034268

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Thank you bro, you have a really nice point on that.
But imo, I still think that Map is way better to choose than side.

#31

TonyB034268

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Respect your points.
For the 1st one, in a BO5, having advantage in map 1 and map 3 is huge because:

For map 1, you will have the early lead
For map 3, it would be either the tie - breaker for the "1 - 1" score line or the game - winning map for the "2 - 0" score line. Also, if you are led "0 - 2", then you have to win, and that would be more possible when that's your picked map.

For the 2nd one, it's not that hard for Riot to calculate the matchdays so that the Grand Finals will be on the weekends. For example, in Masters Toronto, you could change the time for the matchday, which included the Upper Final (PRX vs WOL) and Lower Round 3 (FNC vs G2) 1 day earlier so the team from the Lower Bracket (FNC) could have more time.

And I understand your opinion with "I kinda like the fact we give a huge advantage to the team from the winner's bracket" because obviously, they were undefeated in the playoffs so yea.

#35

Anguibok

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But if grandfinal is on weekend and team cant prep, that mean the other BO5 will not be on weekend and people will not be able to see it no ?

#36

TonyB034268

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You can look at Masters Toronto to understand my point with reducing the time by one day between the matchday with 2 matches of Lower Round 2 (GEN vs G2 and FNC vs SEN) and the matchday with Upper Final (PRX vs WOL) and Lower Round 3 (FNC vs G2) so that we could add one more day after the Lower Final and FNC would have one more day prepare, but still keep the number of days of the tournament and Grand Final will be on Sunday and Lower Final will be on Friday (which is not that bad).
Also, I can see that the Lower Finals don't get as much attention as the level of the Grand Finals (obviously), you can check this with the views of the streams on Youtube, Twitch,.. so I think the Lower Finals being on Fridays and not weekends would still be okay and fairness in competition would be considered more important.
But still, I appreciate your point.

#37

Anguibok

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I get your point and it's feseable that the lower is made on Friday
But if the lower final have less view when it's on Saturday, wouldnt the view suffer even more if they are on Friday ? :/

#38

TonyB034268

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Yea nice point right there.
But I still think Riot can fix the schedule.
Anyways, love your debate mate

#39

Anguibok

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You too <3

What would be the purrfect schedule for you ?

#40

TonyB034268

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Thank you mate.
Probably, I would rather make the Lower Finals to be on Fridays and Grand Finals on Sundays like I said, but those were just my opinions without enough research and considerations though, so your point is still very sensible.

#34

pztzy

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It’s fine as it is