Explained: The Guard to Miss Out Valorant Champions Tour Americans League 2024 Confirms Riot Games, Internet Fumes as the Drama Unfolds

The Valorant Champions Tour 2023 was a massive success. With Evil Geniuses being crowned as the champions for 2023, the tournament went down as one of the most celebrated eSports events in history. Evil Geniuses organization proved its dominance in the competitive era. However, all the fan spotlight is currently on the popular eSports organization, The Guard. The recent series of events sparked a massive controversy in the gaming world. 

The North American eSports team, The Guard, had been crowned the winner of the VCT Ascension tournament that took place in Brazil this year. Thus, with the expected scale of the forthcoming Americas Valorant League 2024, fans were looking forward to the North American giants. However, things took a turn, and not in a good way. The latest reports have confirmed The Guard will not be a part of the 2024 Champions Tour. Following the confirmation, social media turned into a heated hub as the drama unfolded. 

Blame game begins as The Guards fail Riot Games’ deadline for VCT 2024

Riot Games made a shocking announcement through Twitter (now known as X) on the future of The Guards in the 2024 tournament. To everyone’s surprise, one of the most popular eSports organizations failed to adhere to the organizers’ guidelines and hence failed to qualify for the VCT 2024. Earlier, the Valorant creators had made it clear that only 10 partnered teams would be eligible for the next season of VCT. 

According to the official statement made by Riot Games, The Guards did not meet the deadline for agreeing to the Valorant Partnership Agreement. The makers gave the update via a tweet on August 29. 

Read More: Riot Games Is Going Serious on Teabagging Gestures Being Showcased During Valorant Champions 2023 Matches

They wrote, “After several months and rounds of communication with The Guard, the organization has failed to meet the deadline to agree to the Team Participation Agreement for VCT Americas. As a result, The Guard will not be participating in the 2024 VCT Americas League.”

The news left all the VCT fans heartbroken and furious. Adding to the fuel, the eSports team came up with their justification for the same. Well, not exactly a justification as per the fans. “We are disappointed to arrive at this outcome unexpectedly, but moving forward we are committed to supporting our competitive team in their transition as they look for new opportunities,” the Guard quoted in the official statement. 

The organization competed in the Valorant Challengers League this year and successfully qualified for promotion to the Americas League, the top division in the Valorant esports scene. They earned a spot in the Ascension Americas competition in Brazil by placing second in the VCL NA Split 1, third in the VCL Mid-Season Face-Off, and second in the VCL NA Split 2.

Fans call out the management

As expected, the news did not sit well with the VCT enthusiasts. For a team like The Guards, it has always been about the exceptional fan following and branding. However, in the recent past, the team has been through what the management calls a transition phase.

In February 2023, despite having a strong roster lineup, the organization went through a series of major layoffs. At the time of the layoffs, a lot of fans had raised concerns about a possible flawed future. Reports suggested that almost all members of the organization were laid off without proper notice. 

Now the latest unfolding has only left the fans furious as they couldn’t stop pointing fingers at the management. A user took to Twitter and revealed another massive insight. “Players finding this out via Twitter is criminal man, hope it all works out in the end,” the user informed the community. 

The tweet went viral on the platform, inviting a lot of heated reactions from the community. Users thrashed the decision makers of The Guard. 

With the org’s success, it’s a shame how things panned out. It’s unfortunate for the org, as well as its members.

Fans are devastated by the state of affairs and how things played out. To find out this is how things played out with an org that showed so much promise.

Some fans are so angry, they don’t believe there are enough words to describe the situation. Everyone has taken notice and are backing the staff and players, who clearly deserved better.

While the team has met an unfortunate end as far as the next season of VCT is concerned, fans are hoping for a possible redemption arc for the organization. It’s a shame things had to end this way.

Watch This Story: Elon Musk’s Presence At The Valorant Champions Attracted Criticism From The Public