Valorant is one of the most popular esports disciplines. Most bookmakers provide bettors with the opportunity to bet on events in this game. Users can easily find many markets for Valorant matches in Pin-Up UZ betting shop. Not so long ago, the group stage of The Valorant Champions Tour 2023 in Tokyo ended.
At the moment, 8 teams that will play in the playoffs are already known. While all fans are waiting for the start of a new stage, analysts have noticed that the popularity of the championship has decreased by 18% compared to last year. Let’s try to figure out what is the reason for the changes.
The group stage started in the Japanese city of Chiba on June 11 and ended on June 14. From the first day it was noticeable that the interest of the fans is much lower than a year earlier. One of the reasons is the absence of such top teams as Team Liquid, Fnatic, LOUD and Paper Rex, which do not participate in the championship until the playoffs.
Experts also talk about a drop in match views due to the relegation from Group A of such popular teams as Navi and T1. At the same time, the first team was eliminated with a score of 0-2, which undoubtedly caused disappointment to loyal fans. T1 played somewhat better, but still left the group with a score of 1-2. The peak of views, namely, 398 thousand online viewers, was reached during the Navi match. After losing to the Chinese team EDward Gaming, online dropped sharply.
In addition, analysts note that a sharp drop in audience interest also occurred against the backdrop of events in Group B. Thus, the Turkish team FUT Esports took third place with a 1-2 result, while the Chinese team Attacking Soul Esports lost both matches and took the last place. As statistics show, Turkey and China are quite important regions in terms of the number of viewers. Therefore, the low result of these teams could affect the loss of popularity of the championship.
The language statistics are quite interesting. The top three in 2023, as in the past, consisted of English, Japanese and Portuguese. The interest of the English-speaking public fell by only 5.7%, the Japanese – by 30.5%, and the Portuguese by more than 80%. A small drop in popularity among English-speaking fans is within the bounds of statistical error.
The disappointment of viewers from Japan is explained by the fact that many teams from Asian countries in the Valorant Champions Tour 2023 did not show the best results. With regard to the virtual refusal of the Portuguese fans to watch the matches of the group stage, there was a paradox here. The fact is that the Brazilian team LOUD immediately received a pass to the playoffs for the best result. Apparently, the Portuguese spectators decided to skip the group stage and return to the playoffs to support their team.
The top three teams in EMEA will advance to Valorant Champions 2023, while the bottom ranked team in EMEA will book their place in the VCT 2023: EMEA Last Chance Qualifier.
