Just two weeks after Movistar KOI’s exit from the VCT EMEA partner program, Riot is moving quickly to identify a suitable replacement in the league, currently reviewing proposals from multiple prospective VALORANT teams to fill the vacant spot.
On Sept. 22, Daniel Ringland, Head of VALORANT Esports, EMEA, revealed that an invite-only selection process to find the next partner team began last week. “We invited ten orgs with strong ties to VALORANT Esports in EMEA—including our outgoing visitor teams and Ascension teams—to participate in the selection process,” he wrote in a post on X.
About the process, Ringland said they’ve used the “same selection criteria” that was used when the partnership program was launched in 2023. Participating teams were judged based on “competitive operations, fandom and community engagement, marketing capabilities, and overall operational readiness.” The goal, like always, was to select an organization that can boost the esport’s growth as well as support the ecosystem meaningfully.
Taking all that into consideration, Riot is currently evaluating “a number of strong proposals” to pick the best option. The selected team will be revealed in October, potentially soon after VALORANT Champions Paris and the VCT 2025 season concludes.
On Sept. 6, Riot announced the termination of Movistar KOI’s partnership contract with VCT EMEA, citing “a breach of the team’s contractual agreement with the league.”
The unexpected move shocked the entire VALORANT community, with fans demanding for clarity on the reason behind the seemingly knee-jerk decision. According to Movistar KOI’s co-owner Ibai Llanos, Riot didn’t provide a clear explanation to the team either.
While no official confirmation has been given, it’s widely believed that the termination stemmed from Ibai’s failure to co-stream VCT events, as was stipulated in their contract. In the wake of the controversy, Movistar KOI exited the partnership program and announced its departure from VALORANT entirely.
At the time of writing, Riot hasn’t revealed the names of the VALORANT teams it’s considering for replacement. That said, we can expect top organizations like Gentle Mates, Apeks, Guild Esports, and more as contenders for the prestigious spot.
Published: Sep 22, 2025 11:07 pm