Riot Games has revealed details for the open qualifier to select one Korean representative team to compete in the 2027 VCT (VALORANT Champions Tour) Pacific Kickoff. Applications will be accepted from the 2nd to the 18th, with matches starting on the 25th.
The Korea Open Qualifier will hold all matches online on the 25th and 26th. From there, the top four teams will advance to the playoffs. In the playoffs, four directly seeded teams—Kiwoom DRX, Nongshim RedForce (NS), VARREL (VL), and ONSIDE GAMING—will join to bring the total to eight competing teams.
Direct seeds were granted based on each team's recent performance and history. Kiwoom DRX, Nongshim RedForce, and VARREL competed in VCT Pacific, while ONSIDE GAMING won Challengers and previously participated in the 2026 VCT Pacific Play-In and Playoffs.
The playoffs will begin on the 30th. The final stage, running from December 4 to 6, will be held offline at WDG Studio Hongdae, with the Korean representative team for Kickoff being determined on December 6.
Eligibility is open to players aged 17 or older who hold a rank of 'Ascendant 1' or higher. At least three of the five starting roster members must reside in South Korea.
The newly introduced Kickoff Open Qualifier is a regional tournament designed to select teams for Kickoff. One team each will advance from Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia, while one team will earn a spot through the Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) featuring the remaining regions. Eight Pacific partner teams, including T1 and Gen.G (GEN), have been directly seeded into the 2027 VCT Pacific Kickoff.
Since 2024, VCT Kickoff has taken place every January to decide which teams advance to the first Masters event of the year. It also serves as the stage where participating teams showcase their new rosters and strength for the first time.
VALORANT is a 5v5 character-based tactical PC shooter developed by Riot Games. In restructuring its esports ecosystem in 2023, Riot Games established four international leagues—Pacific, Americas, EMEA, and CN—alongside a partnership-based franchise system. The international leagues determine qualifying teams for Masters and Champions, while the lower-tier Challengers leagues operate across 23 regions globally.
