VCT 2024 Teams Power Rankings Part II: EMEA

In the previous part of the series, we went over the Americas region of VCT 2024, which is likely the strongest region in Valorant. In this part we will go over EMEA, the most polarizing region in Valorant.

EMEA has been the single most successful region in Valorant, with five out of the last nine tournaments won by its various representatives. Undoubtedly EMEA has some of the best teams in the world.

But it cannot be said about the region as a whole. Most of the other teams are mediocre at best. In major tournaments, it usually falls upon a single EMEA team making it to the end.

In 2023, courtesy of Fnatic, EMEA had the most representatives in VCT Masters Tokyo and Valorant Champions.

The two group stage EMEA teams in Tokyo, failed to qualify for Playoffs. The only other EMEA team in the playoffs placed 5th-6th. At Champions, only Fnatic and FUT made it out of groups, FUT lost both the games.

Hopefully, 2024 will be better for EMEA. Atleast the teams created in preparation for VCT 2024 are looking really strong.

Let’s go over these teams and understand where they stand in the grand scheme of VCT 2024.

VCT EMEA 2024:

C Tier

• Movistar KOI

KOI in 2023, had a roster that did play well enough, but failed to qualify for the playoffs. In the LCQ, they again had a decent run but missed out on the qualification after losing to Natus Vincere.

And it is hard to place a team that is yet to finalize a squad. They recently lost one of their good pieces in trexxx to Vitality, further aggravating their conditions.

• BBL Esports

Similar to the rest of EMEA, BBL always struggled to secure the game. They undoubtedly were the best team on Ascent. On the other maps, BBL did secure good starts but seldom converted into wins.

The shaky results led to missing out on playoffs, they failed to win in the LCQ, bailing out on the LCQ. A lot of struggles for BBL stemmed from their playstyle and inability to slow down when needed.

During the VCT 2024 off-season, BBL dropped Turko, Souchni, and aimDLL. They were replaced by lauress, Elite, pAura and reazy. AsLan, BBL’s pillar and founding members also retired from competing, putting a dent in their overall structure.

The new (old) players of the Turkish team do have potential but have historically struggled. It won’t magically change now. It’d be hard to make a case for BBL qualifying for and winning international tournaments over their peers.

B Tier

• Karmine Corp

Arguably the biggest French Organization, atleast in terms of fanbase, Karmine Corp struggled in 2023. ScreaM’s decision to IGL a squad brought about the biggest disappointments of 2023.

The few Karmine wins of 2023 came from their run with Asst. Coach ZE1SH leading the team. It was certain after the regular season came to a close that Karmine Corp was not staying together.

The organization started from scratch for VCT 2024, retaining only sh1n. They brought in ex-Apeks and Fnatic’s MAGNUM, N4RRATE from Mad Lion and two VCL players in marteen and tomaszy.

The squad is talented on paper, but historically a mix of culture usually does not yield amazing results. Especially without a strong voice in the team, it is hard to manage the mix.

MAGNUM definitely has ample experience to lead such a squad but it’s always a toss-up for multiple regional rosters to work well.

A Tier

• Gentle Mates

In 2023, Gentle Mates absolutely dominated France. The all-French squad secured both the splits, first under the SBG Esports and then as Gentle Mates.

During their transition to Gentle Mates, the squad acquired Ex6tenZ, one of the biggest tactical minds in the French speaking region.

The former Counter-Strike IGL, not only helped them secure the second split, but the Ascension qualification.

At the tournament, they made a lower bracket run in the playoffs to face the tournament favorites in the finals. They swept Apeks and won the Ascensions, securing a two-year promotion.

Gentle Mates win Valorant Ascension EMEA (Image Source: Riot Games)

For VCT 2024, they retained the complete roster and will play with a complete French Squad, giving the French Valorant fans a homegrown team to watch. The upcoming VCT EMEA Kickoff will be a good litmus test for the Frenchmen.

• Team Vitality

Team Vitality was a breakout EMEA team of 2023. The team had a really stable performance and played some exciting games throughout the year.

Similar to Team Heretics and GIANTX that will come up later in the article, these teams lacked the X factor to win. During the regular season, Team Vitality qualified for the playoffs but were eliminated early.

After the regular season, the team lost their star duelist Twisten to depression and forfeited from the LCQ.

For VCT 2024, the team brought in Sayf, the star duelist from Team Liquid, with VCL players Kicks and runneR. KOI’s trexx was the last minute addition to the ceNder and Destrian duo. Trexx will be the sub for the roster.

The team now definitely has a proven star player in Sayf, Vitality’s VCL duo might lack the experience needed to compete with rest of the rosters in the League.

• FUT Esports

The best Turkish team in the EMEA, FUT had a great 2023. Starting solid in the LOCK//IN, FUT had a strong regular season of the league that concluded with a third place finish in the Playoffs.

At Tokyo, they failed to qualify for the Group Stage. During Valorant Champions, They defeated T1 to secure the Group stage, but they were eliminated by Fnatic in the Lower Round.

While they had a solid season, they had the potential for more. In hopes of reaching new heights in VCT 2024, FUT brought in cNed and yetujey. The new additions significantly increase the fire power of the squad.

With the stability of the original FUT core combined with the added firepower, FUT would easily override their 2023 results. The synergy was on full display during the Convergence event where they won.

The reason for putting FUT in A Tier is the team’s cap. Despite the amazing mix of talent, FUT’s peak falls short of the rest of the squad. While FUT might qualify for multiple international events, winning one is slim.

S Tier

• Team Heretics 

Team Heretics in 2023 were a team always on the verge of a win. While they did not win, it always looked like they’d.

They definitely did struggle throughout 2023, the mix of players did play well on some occasions but could not replicate their successful performances consistently.

The results were disappointing and changes were overdue. They initially brought in Benjyfishy for LCQ.

Following it with adding WoOt, Reins and MiniBoo, securing the brother buff for VCT 2024. The squad looks especially promising with WoOt and Reins, two strong Turkish prodigal talents who played in Turkey.

Boo would once again take the reins as the IGL of the squad. Benjy displayed his ability to perform on the big stage during the LCQ, and would be the poster boy for Team Heretics’ roster after Mixwell's departure.

Lastly MiniBoo comes off of a good season after CASE esports. He’d join his brother to take Team Heretics to a new level.

• GIANTX

GIANTX had a moderately successful season in 2023. The team features mechanically talented players in Fit1nho, nukkye and Cloud.

Hoody provides a much needed stability factor for them and with Rhyme’s IGLing rounding out the roster.

During the regular season, they qualified for the playoffs but lost both the games. They outplayed their opponents in the LCQ and secured Valorant Champions 2023. Unfortunately, they could not qualify over EDward Gaming and Paper Rex, concluding their year.

During the off-season, Rhyme announced retirement from active competitive play. As a replacement, they brought in Redgar for VCT 2024. The team’s stable core is still intact and their improvement in performance during 2023 season will definitely yield fruits under a Master’s winner IGL. Especially with the three stars firing all cylinders, GIANTX is easily a top-four EMEA team.

• Team Liquid

Team Liquid was one of the best EMEA teams on paper in 2023. With Sayf, Jammpi, nAts and Redgar, they had players that could carry the game by themselves.

Unfortunately, they started off bad. They bailed out of LOCK//IN, lost the starting few EMEA League games and it all seemed to be going wrong. But they bounced back, found their form and won the EMEA League playoffs.

They performed decently in Tokyo. But struggled to qualify for Valorant Champions group stage leading to an implosion of the roster. After the dust settled, nAts and Jammpi were the only surviving Liquid members.

For VCT 2024, the organization brought in the Apeks core consisting of Enzo, Keiko and Mistic. The Apeks core won the VCL and made it to the Ascension finals. Unfortunately, they lost to Gentle Mates.

The team still features an amazing mix of talents and can easily give everyone a run for their money. But multiple players on the team are notoriously inconsistent especially on the biggest stages of competition.

• Natus Vincere

In 2022, FPX rose to fame with their legendary five man line-up consisting of Ardiis, Zyppan, Shao, suygetsu and ANGE1. They looked really strong but ardiis dropped from the roster for VCT 2023 and they never looked the same.

They definitely delivered some solid performances with cNed in the roster but they always fell short. It did not feel right. They did qualify for the international events but always looked lackluster, especially for a team of their caliber, Natus Vincere did not look good.

For VCT 2024, ardiis realized how much he missed ANGE1 and returned to the squad. Can they make the same magic? Maybe. But, the competition, especially Fnatic, their archnemesis, are much better than their 2022 selves

If NaVi find their groove, their playstyle and cohesion, the ANGE1 - Boaster battle will be reinvigorated.

S+ Tier

• Fnatic

Arguably the best Valorant team in the World. Fnatic has been the proud EMEA flag bearer for the last three years.

Fnatic was our best Valorant team of 2023. They had the single most successful season yet and performed consistently throughout the year. Their lowest placing for the year was the 4th place finish at Valorant Champions.

The core of Alfajer, Derke and Boaster with the new-comers LEO and Chronicle absolutely demolished teams. During their peak form they smurf against their opponents.

Fnatic winning VCT Masters Tokyo 2023 (Credits: VCT Masters Tokyo // Riot Games)

For VCT 2024, they have kept the five intact, the only team to do so. While they did lose mini for a brief moment, but retained mini and brought in Elmapuddy as the coach.

Elmapuddy has coached North American and Pacific teams in the past. This experience added to Boaster and mini’s “cooking” makes a new recipe for success.

It won’t be a surprise if Fnatic end the year with another three trophies in the cabinet.

This concludes our power list of EMEA. The final and conclusive part of the series will feature the 11 EMEA teams. Stay tuned on Strafe for the last part of VCT 2024 Team Power Rankings.

Featured Image Credits: Riot Games

Read More: VCT 2024 Teams Power Rankings Part I: Americas