Get all your news in one place.

100’s of premium titles.
One app.

Start reading

Get all your news in one place.

100’s of premium titles. One news app.

Start reading

Dot Esports

Sourav Banik

VALORANT Masters Santiago: Schedule, teams, results, format, more

Masters Santiago Playoff Playoffs (Organization)

VALORANT Masters Santiago is the first international LAN of the 2026 VCT season, where the tournament brought the world’s best teams to Chile from the end of February to mid-March.

Masters Santiago came right after the new triple-elimination Kickoff tournaments, where eight squads started in a Swiss Stage, while four league winners waited 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, results, and more.

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.

FURIA winning VCT Americas Kickoff 2026 — Screenshot by Dot Esports

The tournament is being hosted at Espacio Riesco in Santiago, Chile, marking the first time a Masters event is held in Latin America. Here’s what the schedule looks like:

Swiss Stage

Feb. 28, Saturday – Swiss Stage
- Gentle Mates 2 – 0 EDward Gaming
  - 13-11 Haven
  - 13-7 Pearl
- XLG Esports 0 – 2 NRG
  - 2-13 Haven
  - 10-13 Abyss
March 1, Sunday – Swiss Stage
- G2 Esports 0 – 2 Paper Rex
  - 9-13 Split
  - 5-13 Corrode
- T1 0 – 2 Team Liquid
  - 8-13 Breeze
  - 13-15 Split
March 2, Monday – Swiss Stage
- Paper Rex 2 – 1 NRG
  - 13-10 Split
  - 10-13 Pearl
  - 13-11 Haven
- Gentle Mates 2 – 0 Team Liquid
  - 13-11 Pearl
  - 13-3 Bind
March 3, Tuesday – Swiss Stage
- EDward Gaming 0 – 2 T1
  - 1-13 Bind
  - 10-13 Haven
- XLG Esports 0 – 2 G2 Esports
  - 8-13 Abyss
  - 3-13 Haven
March 4, Wednesday – Swiss Stage
- NRG vs Team Liquid
- G2 Esports vs T1

VCT Masters Santiago 2026 full schedule — The full schedule with timings is here. Image via Riot Games

Playoffs Stage

March 6, Friday – Playoffs Stage
March 7, Saturday – Playoffs Stage
March 8, Sunday – Playoffs Stage
March 9, Monday – Playoffs Stage
March 10, Tuesday – Playoffs Stage
No Matches
March 11, Wednesday – No Matches
March 12, Thursday – No Matches

Finals

March 13, Friday – Semifinals
March 14, Saturday – Lower Bracket Final
March 15, Sunday – Grand Final

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 was also during the Swiss Stage when Riot had to redo the Round 2 bracket after a live draw error.

Team Liquid coming third in VCT EMEA Kickoff 2026 — Screenshot by Dot Esports

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 brings together 12 teams from the four international leagues. The path was the same for every region, which was to emerge among the top three from each region.

Americas