Exclusive: Valorant esports boss reveals huge plans to find more new pro players

Changes are planned in Valorant to give more players than ever the chance of making it professionally, according to the game's global head of esports.

The big weekend of Valorant Champs is on the way in Paris and around the time of these events, Riot Games usually reveals what's in the pipeline for Valorant going forward.

It's been revealed in 2026, Valorant Masters will be heading to Santiago de Chile and London with Valorant Champs taking place in Shanghai.

And speaking exclusively to indy100 ahead of that announcement, Leo Faria, Riot Games' global head of Valorant esports, revealed there are plans taking shape to give more Valorant players than ever the chance to make it professionally and for them to be really clear on how to do it.

Leo Faria, Riot Games' global head of Valorant esports / Getty Images

He said: "We've been talking about our plans for 2027 and beyond and we want to reignite the dream of being in Valorant. Five years ago, Valorant was the game to be in, everything was new, everything was possible and everyone went for it.

"But five years on, things start to consolidate and it feels harder to achieve the dream.

"We'll still have Ascension every year where new teams have the possibility to get promoted through international leagues and get to our biggest stages, we've seen a healthy influx of players coming in and moving from tier one to tier two but the dream doesn't feel as attainable as it felt five years ago

"So we've talked about how we have this goal and this desire to make Valorant feel a little bit more open to reignite that dream and give more people more chances and opportunities to make it to the top.

"That's a challenge we hope to address and ensure we have some good news to share on that front soon."

Faria did say it will still be difficult to make it professionally but hopes more opportunities will cast the net wider for top talent.

He said: "It's hard because it's very competitive, when you choose to become a professional player it's like choosing to become an actor or competitive athlete, it's very hard, it's very competitive, only the best of the best will get to the top.

"But the path needs to be clear and possible."

Big changes are planned to give more players than ever the chance to make it pro in Valorant going forward / Riot Games

Riot Games confirmed the locations of next year's Masters and Champions events, with two Masters taking place in Santiago de Chile and London with Champions in Shanghai.

Faria said: "One of the things that makes Valorant special is that it's a truly global community, a truly global esport.

"We try to reflect that in the events we put on, to show love back to these communities. Instead of repeating locations, we always try to go to places we haven't been before and Santiago and London will be first stops for us.

"There's a lot that goes into choosing a specific location, such as the city, population and player base density. We partner up with local governments for all things logistics and getting in and out of the country, shipping gear, selecting venues but it's all driven by the players in these locations."

Speaking about London specifically, Faria said it's one location Riot Games has wanted to bring Valorant to ever since these events started out.

"It's one of those cities that's an incredibly well known city, a travel destination that people want to go to," he said.

"Agents and maps are from real places in the real world and when we go to a region, we try to make the event very specific to that region to celebrate its culture."

Next year, Valorant Masters events are heading to Santiago de Chile and London with Valorant Champs being held in Shanghai / Riot Games

Faria added it feels "special" to be able to put such events on but he and the team feel the "responsibility" to ensure fans enjoy them.

"We're just a bunch of nerds and gamers who like to create video games for others and it feels very special, I love my job and I don't take it for granted," he said.

"The time, effort and passion people put into it to support Valorant feels very special, we feel the responsibility but it also feels very special."

More details about the Valorant 2026 events will be announced by Riot Games.

Elsewhere from indy100:

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 already faces calls for new overpowered feature to be binned
• Red Dead Redemption 3 'setting' has gamers saying the same thing

How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel

Sign up to our free indy100 weekly newsletter

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.