VCT Challengers Japan Stage 2 Will Host Playoffs at Saitama Super Arena With Live Audience

Valorant Esports is heating up big time with multiple regions across the globe having their own tournament schedules. Riot Games also announced that teams across the world would be roped in for the partnership system in the coming months. This only means that the Asian teams, that have lit the competitive scene of Valorant on fire recently, would get more prominence.

Notably, Japan’s Zeta Division which placed third at Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) 2022 Masters Reykjavik, resonated very well with fans and sent reverberations on social media.

VCT Challengers Japan Stage 2 offline matches

At the end of today’s broadcast of 2022 VCT Challengers Japan Stage 2, it was announced that the final stage playoffs would be held offline for the audience. The offline matches will be held at the iconic Saitama Super Arena on 25th and 26th June.

Saitama Super Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Chūō-ku, Saitama, Saitama Prefecture in Japan. Its spectator capacity is 36,500 at maximum settings, making it the second-largest indoor arena in the world.

However, some people on social media platforms pointed out that matches would not be at the main Saitama Super Arena but at a 5K sub-arena within the same venue.

Esports journalist Tyler “Fionn” Erzberger wrote on Twitter, “Per @kizoku_noraren, they will be using the 5k sub arena inside the venue. Still expect a big crowd for the final Maybe they can fill the 35k seat capacity for a Masters or Champions? 🙏”

Meanwhile, Liquipedia admin hesketh2 stated that the actual venue has not yet been confirmed by Riot Games. They wrote, “Not yet but they might use the Main Arena, which is still a 19-20K hall but tickets go live in two days anyway.”

For context, the following are the approximate seating capacity of the different venues inside the arena:

• Stadium - 27-37K

• Main Arena - 12-20K

• Hall and Community Arena - 6K each

The Japanese Valorant scene has been growing with every passing tournament. The competitive scene has been averaging 100K+ viewers for domestic league matches, without the aid of watch parties, according to Tyler “Fionn” Erzberger. It seems like this sudden taking to Valorant comes from the fact that other shooter games like Overwatch and Apex Legends have gotten popular recently. Valorant’s success in Japan could also be a turning point in the history of esports in a country that has historically valued and prioritized fighter games like Tekken over shooters.