April 15: The inaugural edition of the VALORANT Campus Cup (VCC) concluded with a high-energy Grand Finale, bringing together the best of India’s college gaming talent on a national stage. Held on March 30–31, 2026, at the JioGames Innovation Centre at Chitkara University, Punjab, the finale saw JECRC University, Jaipur, clinch the national title after defeating PES University, Bangalore in the final match.
The tournament, a collaboration between Riot Games and JioGames, witnessed participation from 32 institutions across India, establishing itself as one of the most comprehensive structured collegiate esports initiatives in the country to date.
Tournament Highlights
- 2,500+ individual player registrations
- 512 teams competing nationwide
- 32 institutions represented at the Grand Finale
- ~90,000 total views across online and offline broadcasts
- ₹5,00,000 prize pool, including ₹2,50,000 for the champions, ₹1,50,000 for runners-up, and ₹1,00,000 for second runners-up
Commenting on the success of the event, Anushka Bhatnagar, Publishing Lead at Riot Games, said:
“The VALORANT Campus Cup reinforced a clear shift—grassroots competitive play on Indian campuses is not only growing, it’s becoming more structured and intentional. With 2,500 players across 32 institutions, what stood out was the level of preparation and competitive mindset. Campuses are increasingly becoming the starting point for the next generation of VALORANT talent, and VCC demonstrated the strength of this pipeline when supported by the right platform. Our focus now is to further strengthen the grassroots ecosystem and create more opportunities for players to compete and grow.”
The initiative was supported by key ecosystem partners including MSI, CyberPowerPC, and Ant Esports, ensuring standardized competitive conditions in terms of hardware, infrastructure, and broadcast quality across all participating campuses.
All matches were streamed live on the JioGames platform and associated digital channels, extending the tournament’s reach far beyond the physical venue.
The VALORANT Campus Cup is designed as a grassroots esports programme aimed at bringing structured competitive opportunities directly to college campuses across India and South Asia. By engaging early-stage players and fostering competitive culture at the grassroots level, VCC is helping shape the next generation of esports talent while strengthening the cultural footprint of competitive gaming.
