VCT Masters Santiago format
Masters Santiago used a hybrid tournament structure — Swiss Stage feeding into playoffs where league winners got direct championship paths — eight teams started Swiss with four advancing to meet top seeds in playoffs tournament format. That setup keeps early rounds high‑variance but preserves a clearer path for league champs to reach finals, which matters for how teams plan map picks and lineups.
VALORANT Masters Santiago ran Feb. 28–Mar. 15, 2026 at Espacio Riesco in Santiago, Chile and carried a $1,000,000 prize pool. liquipedia.net The four Kickoff winners that bypassed the opening stage were FURIA (Americas), BBL Esports (EMEA), Nongshim RedForce (Pacific) and All Gamers (China). twogpedia.com The Swiss Stage used a “win two, lose two” advancement rule where teams reaching two wins progressed and teams with two losses were eliminated; that phase ran across Feb. 28–Mar. 5. valorantesports.com Playoffs returned a double‑elimination bracket with Upper Quarterfinals seeded by the four Kickoff winners and matches generally best‑of‑three, while the Lower Final and Grand Final were best‑of‑five. strafe.com On‑site schedule disruption occurred during Swiss Round 2: an on‑stage mishap forced a redraw of matches hours after the original broadcast. esports.gg Paper Rex finished the Swiss Stage undefeated and went on to a deep lower‑bracket run, while the tournament’s first‑place prize was set at $350,000 plus six VCT Championship Points. vlr.gg
