Zeta Division, a Japanese VALORANT team, declined to participate in the VCT APAC Last Chance Qualifier and will therefore not participate in VCT Champions.
The decision came after the all-Japanese team had a tough adventure at VCT Masters Three Berlin, leaving the international competition in the group stage after two defeats. They were the second team behind Crazy Raccoon to qualify for the VCT Champions following their participation in Berlin. While Zeta Division has a good chance at APAC LCQ, the organization has chosen not to participate in tournaments for the rest of the year in order to rebuild the team for 2022, according to the official statement.
“VCT Masters Berlin was more challenging than expected. Based on this result, we decided it would be best to use this time to build a system for the 2022 season rather than join the 'APAC LCQ' without strengthening or reorganizing the team.”
This decision was already considered in the past, but was delayed after Zeta Division won the JP VCT Stage Three: Challengers Playoffs over Crazy Raccoon and qualified for the VCT Masters Three Berlin. The team aims to prepare for "long-term success" at VALORANT and apologizes to fans and Riot Games for the inconvenience.
VCT APAC LCQ will take place from October 11-17 and will see 10 Asian teams, including Paper Rex and NUTURN Gaming, compete for a spot at VCT Champions, 2021's most prestigious VALORANT tournament.
