A format change for VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) 2026 has been announced with the tournament set to bring in 1v1 Skirmish matches with no ability usage as the map side selection decider in some matches. The change particularly applies to matches featuring two teams that have been equally seeded, with the winner of the five-round Skirmish getting an edge going into map selection.
What is a Skirmish in VALORANT?
Skirmish was introduced as a game mode in VALORANT on Oct. 3, 2025. In the game, it is a best-of-19 duel mode where the team that kills all of the opposing team players wins the round. By default, the mode disables ability usage, and features an infinite round timer with a buy phase timer.
Unlike the main game, however, VCT’s Skirmish mode will be a first-to-five format, with each team submitting one player to the duel. The two players will go head-to-head in a showcase of pure skill and aim, with the victor earning a map side selection edge for their team.
Related—VALORANT new Skirmish game mode: Features, how to play, and more
What are Equally-Seeded Matches in VCT?
A key component of the format update is that the Skirmish only happens prior to “equally seeded” matches. So what are these equally-seeded matches? Simply put, these are matches between two teams that began the tournament (or the playoffs) from an equal footing.
For example, in Stage 1’s group stages, all first round match seedings were previously determined by coin toss. Now, these same matches will start with a Skirmish first, replacing the randomness of the coin flip with a demonstration of individual mechanical skill.
How often will fans see Skirmish games in 2026?
Across the VALORANT Champions Tour in 2025, we saw a whopping 291 instances where a coin toss was required to determine the map side selection order. As Global Head of VALORANT Esports, Leo Faria, mentioned on X, the new Skirmish system will act as a replacement for the coin toss in 2026, thus we could see hundreds of skirmishes across the year.
This of course depends on the exact rulebooks for the tournaments, but based on the KICK//OFF rulebook for 2026, we should see seven such 1v1 skirmishes in each region, giving fans a proper taste of the new format.
1v1 Duels in other Team Esports
While the 1v1 duels are of course most similar to solo FPS games such as Quake, or Unreal Tournament, there have also been formats in team games like VALORANT where such duels have been used. Here are some such instances from other Esports.
Rainbow Six Siege RE:LO:AD 2025
Ubisoft’s tactical shooter often falls on the opposite side of the spectrum to VALORANT, but in 2025 the RE:LO:AD tournament’s Bullet system gave teams a chance to invoke duels for survival. As a recap, the Bullet system basically acted as a team’s standing in the tournament, with each match allowing teams to “Reload”, or wager, some of their Bullets. The winning team gets their Bullets back, while the loser forfeits them.
When a team’s Bullets dropped below zero, they were eliminated. Unless, they invoked a Duel Card to fight for survival. When invoked, this card would force both teams to nominate their duellist for a 1v1, much like VALORANT’s Skirmish.
Across the tournament, this card was invoked four times (PSG Talon, SCARZ, G2, SSG), with three of the teams managing to evade elimination using the mechanic. Only PSG Talon invoked a duel and still found themselves eliminated at the hands of Elevate.
BLAST Pro Series (2017-2019)
Before BLAST became an industry leader in Esports production, they ran a tournament series known as the BLAST Pro Series. These Counter-Strike events featured elements such as a stage featuring multiple matches simultaneously, a lack of overtime, and most notably the third-place decider called the BLAST Pro Standoff.
This was another duel format, this time featuring all five players. Each duel was first-to-seven rounds, and each team would select a player to compete using pre-determined weapons in the duels. While this format was a far cry from a competitive one, it did create exciting content pieces for fans to watch. FaZe (Counter-Strike’s classic superteam) were easily the most successful in the format, but Danny “zonic” Sørensen holding his own against CS’s GOAT Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev was easily the biggest highlight.
League of Legends 1v1 Side Selection in VCS/PCS
In 2024, Riot’s MOBA juggernaut, League of Legends also tried out duels for side selection. Specifically, the Vietnam Championship Series and Pacific Championship Series regional leagues brought in 1v1 side selection for the final maps in Bo3 and Bo5 matches.
In online communities like Reddit, fans found the format change an exciting shift, and the system was retained for 2025 as well.
What does this mean for VALORANT’s competitive future?
With the introduction of Skirmish matches to VCT 2026, Riot Games is adding another layer of spectacle and strategy to tournament matches. Teams will now need to consider not just their tactical preparation and agent compositions, but also which player they trust to represent them in these high-pressure 1v1 scenarios.
Looking ahead, the success of this format could pave the way for further innovations in competitive VALORANT. If fan reception is positive and the Skirmishes prove to be compelling viewing experiences, we might see the format expand beyond just equally-seeded matches.
