VALORANT Masters Santiago is the first international LAN of the 2026 VCT season, where the tournament will bring the world’s best teams to Chile from the end of February to mid-March.
Masters Santiago comes right after the new triple-elimination Kickoff tournaments. Eight squads will start in a high-stakes Swiss Stage, while four league winners wait in the playoffs with a straight shot at the trophy and Championship Points.
If you’re planning to watch every match, follow your favorite region, or just tune in for the bracket updates, here’s everything you need to know about VALORANT Masters Santiago, including the full schedule, format, and how the 12 teams reach the stage.
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VALORANT Masters Santiago start and end dates
VALORANT Masters Santiago runs from Feb. 28 to March 15, 2026. The tournament is divided into three main blocks: the Swiss Stage, Playoffs, and the final weekend, during which matches are held on most days between these dates.
The tournament will be hosted at Espacio Riesco in Santiago, Chile, marking the first time a Masters event is held in Latin America. Riot has locked Masters Santiago into the core VCT schedule, sitting right after the regional Kickoff events and before Stage 1 league play. It also serves as an early checkpoint on the road to Champions Shanghai later in the year, with Championship Points on the line for every team attending.
Masters Santiago format
Masters Santiago uses a two-stage structure: a Swiss Stage, followed by a double-elimination Playoff bracket.
All the Swiss Stage matches are best-of-three, and it runs from Feb. 28 to March 4, featuring eight teams, including the second and third-place finishers from each regional Kickoff event in China, Pacific, EMEA, and Americas. The four teams that finish the Swiss Stage at 2-0 or 2-1 move on to join the four waiting league winners in the Playoff bracket.
It then shifts into a double-elimination Playoff bracket running from March 6 to 15. The four regional Kickoff winners come in as top seeds, joined by the four surviving teams from the Swiss Stage.
Most Playoff matches are best-of-three, but the lower bracket final and grand final are best-of-five.
All qualified teams at VALORANT Masters Santiago
Masters Santiago will bring together 12 teams from the four international leagues. The path is the same for every region, which is emerging in the top three. Once all the Kickoffs are over, I will update this section with the finalised teams from each region.
Teams coming first from each league’s Kickoff skip the Swiss Stage and go straight to the Playoff bracket as a top seed. The second and third-placed teams from each Kickoff will start in the Swiss Stage and must win through to reach the Playoffs.
How to watch Masters Santiago
Like always, you can catch VALORANT Masters Santiago live on their official Twitch and YouTube channels.
