New Challengers Arise: Organizations start making their moves for Valorant Ascension League

Riot announced the new Valorant Esports ecosystem back in August of 2022. While many thought this was a step in the right direction, some thought it'd be an unfair system. Soon Riot unveiled their plans for the Tier 2 scene. The Valorant community reacted positively to the new announcement.

In September, Riot announced the partnered organizations, and we saw the first biggest Rostermania in Valorant, which is on the brink of conclusion. While many exciting organizations have made it, many haven't.

With many exciting players left out and multiple organizations out of partnership, The Valorant Challengers in all the regions will be top tier. And with the path set to make it into the Valorant Premier events through Ascension, organizations worldwide have started making their moves.

One such organization is Bleed, which didn't apply for the partnership and signed one of the strongest APAC controllers in sScary for their Ascension league roster. G2 Reportedly are making their moves in NA to field a roster to compete.

Recently, a few more stories have come to light. Let's take a brief look at them.

OWL's Shanghai Dragons plan to compete in VCT 2023:

Credit: Shanghai Dragons Twitter

Switching from Overwatch to Valorant is not new, with many popular Overwatch players making it big, namely Derrek, Sayaplayer, Patiphan, Sinatra and recently Carpe. It was reported earlier by Seulgi that the 2021 OWL champions, Shanghai Dragons, will be fielding a roster to compete in the VCT Ascension League in 2023. This will not be the first OWL organisation. Sentinels is another organization that started with OWL and has made a successful Valorant team. While there are no further updates, the roster is likely to be announced soon.

Nongshim RedForce sets foot in Valorant with Pine as the Coach:

Credit: RedForce

As reported by Blixx.gg, Nongshim, the famous Korean food and beverage company, is looking to return to esports with a Valorant roster. The Nongshim RedForce, which previously competed in LCK, is set to sign former Overwatch pro and Gen.G Assistant Coach Kim "Pine '' Do-hyeon as the first pillar of their new Valorant roster. The organization also applied for the Partnership program but failed to secure a spot. The Nongshim Redforce team will likely compete in the

Challengers League in 2023.

Crazy Racoons finalize the VCT Ascension roster:

Credit: Riot Games

The best Japanese Valorant team of 2021, Crazy Racoons, have finalized thier Valorant roster, adding Makiba in Rion's place to play in the Ascension league. The roster now consists of Neth, Astellm popogachi, Meiy and Medusa, and the new member makiba.

Soniqs reveal their 2023 Valorant Roster:

The US-based Esports organization Soniqs announced the addition of PureR, Shonk, mina and nerve to their Valorant roster. The organization has been a constant name in the Tier 2 scene in NA and going into the 2023 season. The team will look to compete in the Ascension League. The team is looking to leave an impact with PureR, who was a crucial part of XSET in 2021. Soniqs, TSM, and The Guard will be some of the top organizations competing in the Valorant Ascension League next year.

Soon, Multiple more organizations will make their move, and the Ascension League. Especially in North America will be as stacked as the Premier events. The 2023 Valorant will be a big year for the community and the players.