With the Valorant Champions Tour 2022 finale on the horizon, with it comes the haunting reality that, for a period of time, there’ll be no more VCT to dine on until the top-tier circuit returns next year. Fortunately, Red Bull is once again bringing back its Home Ground event for a third consecutive year, and it’s set to be an EMEA vs North America grudge match.
From December 9-11, eight of the best teams from both regions will duke it out for the Home Ground trophy, an undisclosed prize pool, and the appropriate bragging rights. While teams from NA will be invited, those hoping to get in on the action from EMEA will have to go through open qualifiers – teams from Turkey will have their own closed qualification.
Promising a “futuristic neon underground aesthetic”, this year’s tournament is set to be held in Manchester, UK’s Victoria Warehouse – an iconic part of the city’s rich musical heritage. Oh, and there’s going to be a live audience, too.
As with other Home Ground events, the tournament will once again utilise a ‘Home’ and ‘Away’ format, which has teams pick a home map each to kick off the tie. Although each match is a best-of-five, should one team win both home maps – effectively going 2-0 up – then the tie is immediately ended, with the victorious team moving forward.
Last year’s tournament saw Team Liquid take home the lion’s share of its €60,000 (~$69,000) prize pool, after a 3-1 victory over VCT 2021 champions Acend in the grand final. Needless to say, the transatlantic tangle that hallmarks this year’s event is going to be spicy.