VCT EMEA has postponed matches following ongoing technical issues

The VCT EMEA has been dealing with recurring technical failures related to equipment and the arena for some time. Following the most recent matches, which were heavily disrupted by repeated technical pauses impacting both players and fans, VCT EMEA has decided to postpone the April 25 matches.

Nikita "Derke" Sirmitev, along with many others, has publicly expressed frustration with an issue that dates back to the "beginning of franchising." In a post on X, he revealed that players were told to "be patient" at the start, as it was a new organization and improvements would come with time. However, three years later, nothing has changed. "But now it’s year three, and nothing seems to be improving," he wrote.

In his post, Derke raised concerns about the poor equipment, especially the monitors, an issue many players have echoed. He said, "The PCs aren’t optimized, settings change constantly, and most tech pauses are caused by the game stuttering severely. The IT team checks it, but whether they notice the issues or not, we just keep playing. There are no fixes.”

To address these performance issues, the organizers informed players that they would compete online from the stage with a 30 ping. While this may seem minor to an average player, it creates a significant disadvantage for professionals. Derke, who plays for Team Vitality, pointed out, "I get a 7 ping at home."

The player voiced his frustration, saying, "It’s honestly shocking to see that every other region has superior PCs and monitors, while in EMEA, we’ve been stuck with setups from League of Legends." He added that when players asked for a solution, officials responded with remarks like, "But League of Legends doesn’t have this problem." A Team Vitality player also criticized the decision to remove the crowd from Wednesday matches, expressing disappointment and saying he feels bad for "rookies making their tier 1 debut without an audience."

The downfall of April 25's matches started right after the first round of Team Liquid vs Karmine Corp. With a technical pause of almost half an hour, both players, casters, and fans started to get worried. When the game resumed, it took three more rounds until the next tech pause. When the red screen appeared, everyone knew the worst was coming: another tech pause. During this match, there were four pauses on the first map, bringing the game to the three-hour-long mark.

VCT EMEA has postponed the matches between Team Liquid vs. Karmine Corp and FNATIC vs. Team Heretics. In a statement on X, the organization cited "significant and ongoing technical issues" as the reason for the decision. They confirmed that the league will revise the schedule in the coming days and share an update with the community. Riot Games also announced that all fans who purchased tickets to attend the matches in person will receive a full refund.

The current problem has frustrated and exhausted both players and teams. Fans have also faced long waits and constant game delays. Jake "Boaster" Howlett from FNATIC addressed the situation on X, apologizing to supporters who couldn't watch the matches. He wrote, "Sorry to the fans that came today. I know two of our supporters traveled from Japan. I’m not sure if anyone else came from far, but I would like to make it up to you somehow."

Boaster actively engaged with fans in the replies, offering to meet those still at the arena, chat with them, and take pictures. Supporters from Japan, Australia, Scotland, England, Switzerland, and beyond missed the experience they had traveled for due to these ongoing issues.

Kamel "Kameto" Kebir, co-owner and president of Karmine Corp, announced that he is boycotting VCT EMEA until the ongoing issues are resolved. "I won’t cast VCTs anymore until they fix their issues. We shouldn't be taken for a ride like this," he wrote in French on X. In response, many fans have started trending the words "boycott" alongside the VCT EMEA tag. Some even compared VCT Americas, pointing out that EMEA players were competing with frame rates over 300 FPS lower than their Americas counterparts.

Tyson "TenZ" Ngo, now retired from professional VALORANT, spoke out about the situation on X, expressing his frustration that "the best players and teams aren't always given the best conditions to perform at their highest potential." He backed up Derke’s concerns and stressed that the issue isn’t new. "What’s most disheartening isn’t that it happened once, it’s that this has been a recurring issue since the inception of the VCT circuit," he wrote. TenZ also revealed that the ongoing technical problems played a role in his decision to "hang up the mouse."

We will monitor the situation and await further updates from VCT EMEA regarding the ongoing equipment issues and technical pauses.

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