VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ: Teams, Schedule, How to Watch and More

Six teams and two Champions slots – the VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ will be a short five-day event starting on July 19

The 2023 EMEA Last Chance Qualifier will be the final opportunity for teams to secure a spot in the biggest VALORANT event this year – Champions 2023. Unlike Pacific and Americas LCQ, where only one team can qualify for Champions, EMEA LCQ will grant two slots for the participating teams, thanks to FNATIC’s Masters Tokyo victory. This will be a short 5-day tournament, and here is everything you need to know before tuning into the exciting games – 

VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ Stream – How to Watch

You can tune into VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ matches every day at 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST in the following official streams –

• Twitch
• YouTube

VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ – List of Teams

The EMEA LCQ will feature six teams, three from Spain and one from Turkey, France and Ukraine.

• Natus Vincere

NAVI’s form in their incredible 7-2 run in VCT EMEA’s Regular Season didn’t follow through in the Playoffs, as they barely clung onto the 4th spot, securing a chance to compete in Masters Tokyo. Their Japan journey ended in a major disappointment, as the European squad had to leave without a single victory from the Group Stage. Nonetheless, we are expecting a good showing from Kyrylo “ANGE1” Karasov’s squad in the LCQ, given they are not facing the fierce competition of the Masters.

• Giants

Giants had commendable victories against several teams in the Regular Season, including the Masters contender FUT. However, they found themselves struggling when facing the top fours of the region, which resulted in a 0-2 record in the Playoffs. Fortunately, this squad has the second-best seed in the tournament, granting them more than one chance to fight for a Champions slot. 

• BBL Esports

The Turks had a 3-6 record in the EMEA League’s Regular Season, and their victories came against some of the weakest opponents in the competition. However, they showed glimmers of excellence by taking maps against strong names like FNATIC and Liquid, which should be a sign of hope for a team that’s pretty new to the international scenes. BBL will be facing Karmine Corp in their first game, which is another plus for the squad since their opposition has been facing many issues lately with their form and roster.

• Team Heretics 

With some of G2’s EMEA lineup’s stars, expectations were high when Team Heretics arrived at VCT EMEA. Sadly, the roster immensely disappointed in the Regular Season with a 2-7 record, failing to qualify for the Playoffs. Going into the LCQ, Heretics have decided to part ways with Aleksander “zeek” Zygmunt and are likely to play with their assistant coach Brandon “weber” Weber. Having a somewhat incomplete roster like this may result in an early exit for the team unless we see a new look from the squad.

• KOI

On their very first VCT EMEA match facing against NAVI, KOI surprised the scene with a 2-0 victory. However, the remainder of the Regular Season did not see much greatness from the Europeans, as they finished at the #9 spot with a 2-7 record. Unlike other squads who experienced poor form in the EMEA League and have gone through roster changes, KOI are coming into the LCQ with the same lineup.

• Karmine Corp

This French team was the subject of countless criticism during its journey through VCT EMEA, as the roster, even with two former Liquid stars, failed to perform well in the tournament. The backlash was severe, and one of their members left the roster midway through the event. Ahmed “ZE1SH” El Sheikh, the squad’s assistant coach, played in the empty slot and will likely continue to do so in the LCQ.

Credit: Riot Games

VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ – Prize 

The winner and runner-up of the LCQ will qualify for Champions 2023. EMEA region has been granted an extra spot for Champions 2023 on the back of FNATIC’s Masters Tokyo victory. 

VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ – Format

Screenshot via Liquipedia

Both the first two encounters will be single-elimination knockout matches with the bottom four seeds of VCT EMEA. The two winning squads will move forward to a double-elimination bracket to meet the rest of the two squads with the best seeds. 

All of the matches will be Bo3s except for the Lower Final and Grand Final, as those two will be Bo5s.

VCT 2023 EMEA LCQ – Schedule

The 2023 EMEA LCQ will start on July 19, 2023, with matches starting at 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST on Wednesday. It will be a 5-day-long event. Here are the detailed schedule –

Knockout Round

Day 1, Wednesday, July 19

• Team Heretics 1 – 2 KOI – 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST
• BBL Esports 1 – 2 Karmine Corp – 11:00 PT / 14:00 ET / 20:00 CEST

Upper Semifinals

Day 2, Thursday, July 20

• Natus Vincere 0 – 2 KOI – 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST
• Giants Gaming 2 – 0 Karmine Corp – 11:00 PT / 14:00 ET / 20:00 CEST

Upper Final

Day 3, Friday, July 21

• KOI 0 – 3 Giants Gaming – 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST

Lower Round 1

Day 3, Friday, July 21

• Natus Vincere 2 – 1 Karmine Corp – 11:00 PT / 14:00 ET / 20:00 CEST

Lower Final

Day 4, Saturday, July 22

• KOI 0 – 3 Natus Vincere – 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST

Grand Final

Day 5, Sunday, July 23

• Giants Gaming 3 – 0 Natus Vincere – 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST

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