VCT EMEA Stage 1 records impressive viewership

VCT EMEA Stage 1, the first phase of VALORANT’s semi-closed Europe, the Middle East and Africa league, has concluded with impressive viewership numbers.

According to esports data platform Esports Charts, Stage 1 has become the second most-watched VCT EMEA event so far with 305,737 peak viewers, right behind EMEA Kickoff 2024 with 419,206 peak viewers.

Eleven partnered teams competed in EMEA Stage 1 from April 3rd until May 12th. The grand final was the most-watched series at the event, with UK-based organisation Fnatic securing first place over the Spanish organisation Team Heretics.

Both teams, as well as FUT Esports, have qualified for the upcoming Masters Shanghai alongside three teams from China Stage 1, Pacific Stage 1 and Americas Stage 1. Commencing on May 23rd, VCT’s second international event of the year will feature 12 top teams from around the globe.

Two-time international trophy winner Fnatic has built a significant fanbase within VALORANT esports. The organisation sits at the top of Stage 1’s EMEA teams in terms of viewership and led VCT team capsule sales in the region.

Interestingly, French-speaking platforms peaked at 154,640 throughout Stage 1, only 23,575 viewers below English as the most popular language. This is most likely due to the popularity of French teams Karmine Corp and Gentle Mates.

Karmine Corp, in particular, won this year’s Kickoff event in the region and remained among the most popular teams this split with 3.9m watch hours. Only Fnatic (6.2m) and Team Heretics (4.5m) recorded more hours watched.

After the tournament’s successful conclusion, Stage 1 exceeded the 303,079 peak viewership that VCT EMEA League 2023 recorded. Last year saw only one split during the regular season, compared to the two-stage format introduced by Riot Games for the 2024 EMEA regular season.