Game developer and publisher Riot Games has joined forces with Indian gaming and esports company NODWIN Gaming to operate the 2025 edition of the VALORANT Challengers South Asia competition.
The NODWIN VALORANT Challenges South Asia (VCSA) competition began on March 4th, 2025, and will run until July 14th.
This year’s tournament features a revised format in addition to an INR 1.13cr (~£100,336) prize pool and new methods of qualification for amateur teams across the region. Teams from Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Afghanistan, and the Maldives have already participated in qualifiers for the event.
The VCSA will run across three splits, with each one using a promotion and relegation system enabling the best teams to qualify for the main competition. The top four teams at the end of the third split will earn a place in the Ascension qualifiers, where a chance to compete in the second tier of the VCT ecosystem is up for grabs.
“NODWIN VALORANT Challengers South Asia represents the pinnacle of competitive VALORANT esports in our region,” said Akshat Rathee, Co-founder and Managing Director of NODWIN Gaming. “Together with Riot Games, we’re crafting a sustainable and adaptive roadmap for esports in South Asia.”
This isn’t the first instance Riot Games has collaborated with NODWIN Gaming. The two parties have previously partnered to host a range of other tournaments in South Asia. Outside of VALORANT, the company continues to host the BGMI Masters Series, a competition for mobile battle royale title Battlegrounds Mobile India.
For NODWIN Gaming, 2025 is proving to be a year of expansion to cement its position as one of the largest esports and gaming companies in the world. In January, it acquired tournament organiser StarLadder, while December 2024 saw it acquire media and marketing company AFK Gaming. In the same month, it also extended its existing deal with The Game Awards to secure the exclusive regional distribution rights for the annual ceremony.
