VCT EMEA’s 2027 Kickoff qualifiers will send four non-partner teams to Berlin, with two places for Europe and one each for Türkiye and MENA. The November schedule is now set, and the entry rules mean teams must check player age, rank, residency and roster continuity before signing up.

The 12-team Kickoff will also include eight partnered teams. Each non-partner team that qualifies through the open route will receive $100,000, giving these qualifiers a substantial prize beyond the Berlin berth.

Each region runs two open qualifiers, but the path from those events to Kickoff is not identical. Open qualifiers use single-elimination brackets with best-of-three matches; playoff, decider and final formats vary by region.

Europe and Türkiye playoffs are scheduled for November 26–December 5. MENA’s qualifier decider is November 20, followed by its LAN final on December 6. The final is planned for one location to support low-latency play.

Players must be at least 17 and have reached Ascendant 1 or higher at registration or during the previous three acts. Teams choose Europe, Türkiye or MENA as their home region when registering, and at least three of their five starters must be residents of that region. No more than two starters may be non-residents.

That regional minimum must hold as teams progress, and a team advancing to playoffs must retain at least three players from the roster that qualified. Every player needs a valid passport and a Riot platform profile for verification; country-specific eligibility is set out in the competition rules. Team names and branding must also respect existing intellectual property.

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