Nerd Street Gamers, T1 Team Up As Hosts For First North American 'VALORANT' Tournament

T1 Entertainment & Sports and Nerd Street Gamers are partnering up to host the T1 x Nerd Street Gamers VALORANT Showdown, the first North American event in the game's Ignition Series.

The tournament will last from June 26-28 and feature a $50,000 prize pool. The event will open the opportunity for both amateurs and professionals to compete.

"We're thrilled to partner with Nerd Street Gamers to bring Riot's first VALORANT Ignition Series event to North America," Joe Marsh, CEO of T1, stated in a press release. "In addition to T1's VALORANT team, we've invited some of the biggest names in gaming to battle it out for the record-breaking $50K prize pool in North American and look forward to sharing some exciting programming elements as we get closer to the event."

T1 will feature "world-renowned" "VALORANT" players, influencers, and streamers in addition to exclusive interviews with Riot and T1 members. Nerd Street Gamers is powering the event.

"It is incredibly exciting to see publishers like Riot Games embrace the amateur community by empowering Nerd Street Gamers and T1 to host tangible path to pro events like our upcoming qualifiers" said John Fazio, founder and CEO of Nerd Street Gamers. "Riot has acted on their commitment to support the competitive gaming scene, and we are looking forward to supporting both pros and amateurs for the Ignition Series in North America."

Qualifiers will happen June 20 -21 and allow participating teams to try to secure one of the four spots. The Showdown will highlight 16 teams.

"From big-time partners to an impressive prize pool and the chance for amateurs to compete alongside household names, T1 and Nerd Street Gamers are helping us kick off North American VALORANT esports in a big way," said Matt Archambault, head of NA esports partnerships and business development at Riot Games. "We have no doubt that the Showdown will be an incredible opening to the rest of the NA Ignition Series."