The stunning revelation that The Guard would not play in the 2024 VCT Americas season because they missed the deadline to sign the squad Participation Agreement shocked the area less than three days after a North American VALORANT squad won the Champions 2023 trophy.
Leo Faria, the global head of VALORANT esports, responding yet again to community backlash, put out a lengthy statement that provided more information on the issues with The Guard and its VALORANT roster, and attempted to explain why some of the most called for alternative solutions would not be feasible.
Regarding The Guard, Faria stated “every team that qualified for Ascension signed the Team Participation Agreement prior to the start of the tournament, and signatures were held in escrow,” with the expectation that the teams that win Ascension would release the signatures to finalize their promotion to the international VCT leagues.
Hey everyone. This situation is very unfortunate and none of us wanted this outcome. We designed Ascension hoping to see new teams and players joining our International Leagues every year, and it’s disheartening to see this happening in year one. That said, I want to share some… https://t.co/pdXWDVtP2Z
— Leo Faria (@lhfaria) August 30, 2023
The Guard never completed this process, Faria said, and the org did not respond “after two months and several follow-ups.”
This statement does however clash with the one put out by The Guard, in which the org says that it is “disappointed to arrive at this outcome unexpectedly.”
In the wake of The Guard not participating, many in the VALORANT community have called for the players to be allowed to still compete given their triumph in Ascension, even if under a different organization.
Faria claims that, because the players were not free agents when they competed, they are not permitted to find an organization that will support them as a “free agent team” would be. “Allowing an acquisition by a different organization now opens the door for slots in the VCT to be sold,” Faria explained, “which we do not allow.”
A Riot employee who spoke to Dot Esports on background provided additional context to this ruling, saying the company “can’t and shouldn’t make business decisions on behalf of players,” such as potentially assigning the players to another organization.
Additionally, the Riot employee said, “If we don’t pick the org, it’s very hard to be sure that no money exchanged hands in the migration.”
Still, the decision leaves the players and coach of The Guard both without an earned VCT Americas spot and without a team, as The Guard has permitted the players to pursue “new opportunities.” Many still call for Riot to make an exception in these unique circumstances, and somehow permit the players to play in VCT Americas after earning the right to do so via Ascension.