Riot Games Spends More Than $78 Million on VALORANT Esports in 2024

Introduction

Riot Games has now ensured its support for VALORANT Esports by investing more than $78 million in VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) teams in 2024. The VCT was founded in 2023 and has quickly become one of the most popular leagues in the competitive gaming industry, receiving a lot of love from fans and players. Thanks to its unique organization and financial backing, the VCT has put VALORANT Esports on the map of international esports.

$44 Million Transmitted Through In-Game Content

Revenue sharing from in-game content is one of the pillars of Riot Games’ financial support system. This year Riot released a new VCT bundle that included:

• A skin for the Classic pistol
• A team-branded gun buddy
• A custom player card created by the teams

This bundle, together with the VALORANT Champions 2024 bundle, brought significant revenues to the league.

Riot stated that $44,300,000 of this revenue was distributed to the teams across the VCT ecosystem. Their revenue-sharing model splits the earnings from the VALORANT Champions bundle into 60 shares:

• The 16 teams that make it to the VALORANT Champions event get two parts each
• The other 28 teams get one share per team

This approach is effective in providing equal support to teams irrespective of the level of competition they are in.

A Breakthrough Year

2021 can be considered a breakthrough year for VALORANT esports. Riot’s total contribution of $78.4 million to VCT teams this year includes:

• $44.3 million from in-game bundles
• Stipends and prize pools awarded depending on team performance throughout the year

Such an investment level shows Riot Games’ commitment to the sustainable and healthy development of the esports industry.

Structure and Stability

The VCT is designed with no relegation system, ensuring stability for teams. This model is inspired by successful franchising systems such as the NFL and IPL. The VCT Ascension program guarantees a competitive yet fair environment for all the teams, with a clear pathway for growth.

The Bigger Picture

Although Riot has not revealed the overall amount of money it has made from this year’s Champions skin bundle, the numbers given show the enormous financial opportunity that VALORANT’s in-game items hold. These figures also raise questions about the total amount of money Riot makes annually from its vast range of skin bundles and cosmetics.