Trent Reinsmith
- What: VALORANT Champions Tour 2023: LOCK//IN Sao Paulo
- Date: February 13 – March 4, 2023
- Location: Ginasio do Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo, Brazil
- How to Watch: Twitch and YouTube
The first event of the 2023 VALORANT Champions Tour kicks off on February 13 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. That event, VCT 2023 LOCK//IN Brazil, is the biggest LAN event in the history of VALORANT. A total of 30 teams from the EMEA, Pacific, Americas leagues and China have been invited to the single-elimination tournament, which concludes on March 4, 2023, at the 10,000-seat Ginasio do Ibirapuera.
The first three rounds of the tournament will be a best-of-three format. The teams that survive to the semi-finals and finals will play best-of-five matches. Many teams are looking at this large event as a preview of the 2023 season and as a way to see where their new rosters stand compared to the other team’s they will compete with later in the season. In short, the VCT 2023 LOCK//IN Brazil is a preview of the longer season.
The total prize pool for this event is $500,000 USD. The winning team takes home a payday of $100,000. The runner-up earns $60,000, while third and fourth place teams pocket $40,000 each. The minimum winnings for the event are $5,000 per team.
Before we look at the betting breakdown for the VCT 2023 LOCK//IN Brazil tournament, check out the best esports betting sites to get started on making the best Esports bets and while you’re at it, take a look at our best Valorant betting sites.
VALORANT Champions Tour 2023: LOCK//IN Sao Paulo picks
| To Win 2023 Valorant Kick-Off Event |  |  |  |
| Natus Vincere | +450 | +450 | +450 |
| Sentinels | +500 | +700 | +500 |
| Fnatic | +500 | +600 | +500 |
| Cloud9 | +550 | +800 | +550 |
| DRX | +550 | +550 | +550 |
| LOUD | +800 | +600 | +800 |
| NRG | +900 | +600 | +900 |
| Team Liquid | +900 | +900 | +900 |
| Paper Rex | +900 | +1100 | +900 |
| 100 Thieves | +1000 | +900 | +1000 |
| Team Vitality | +1700 | +1500 | +1700 |
| Leviatan | +2000 | +1800 | +2000 |
| T1 | +2500 | +3300 | +2500 |
| Karmine Corp | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Gen G. | +2500 | +4000 | +2500 |
| Evil Geniuses | +3300 | +2500 | +3300 |
| KOI | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Heretics | +4000 | +3300 | +4000 |
| KRU Esports | +4000 | +6600 | +4000 |
| ZETA Division | +5000 | +5000 | +5000 |
| FUT Esports | +6600 | +5000 | +6600 |
| Giants Gaming | +6600 | +6600 | +6600 |
| FURIA | +7500 | +5000 | +7500 |
| Global Esports | +7500 | +7500 | +7500 |
| MIBR | +10000 | +7500 | +10000 |
| BBL Esports | +10000 | +5000 | +10000 |
| Team Secret | +15000 | +10000 | +15000 |
| Rex Regum Qeon | +15000 | +10000 | +15000 |
| DetonatioN Gaming | +15000 | +10000 | +15000 |
| Talon Esports | +15000 | +10000 | +15000 |
Natus Vincere
Natus Vincere is a Ukrainian team that made some big noise when it acquired most of the FunPlus Phoenix roster, a team that won the Masters Copenhagen. The team played together in November at the G-Loot VALORANT Clash and took home first place in that event. In the process of earning that win, NAVI beat out teams like Giants and Team Vitality, who will also participate at the Valorant Kickoff event in Brazil.
This team, which consists of ANGE1, Shao, Zyppan, SUYGETSU, and cNed is well-rounded and if they have a strong showing in Brazil, they could emerge as the favorites to win the 2023 VALORANT CHAMPIONSHIP.
Sentinels
Sentinels travel from America for this Brazil event. The team is looking for redemption after failing to qualify for the VALORANT Champions event in 2022. With that in mind, the team made some changes to its lineup late in 2022. The only member of the team who is not a new edition is TenZ. The new Sentinel team added zekken, Sacy, pANcada, dephh and SicK.
Last year was not a strong one for Sentinel, but they have high hopes of getting back in the mix in 2023. While a win in Brazil isn’t a must have for the American squad, anything less than a deep run will be a failure for them. With that in mind, they have a big test in the first round, where they are matched up against Fnatic.
Fnatic
A European team who finished in the 5th-6th spot at the 2022 VALORANT Champions event, Fnatic will have a new look in Brazil. Three members of that 2022 team remain in Boaster, Alfajer and Derke. The new players on the squad are Chronicle and Leo. It will be interesting to see if the new team members help or hurt the team that won Superdome, EMEA Stage 2 Challengers, and finished fourth at the Stage 2 Masters in Copenhagen. A lot of how this team will fare will be determined in the opening round against Sentinels.
LOUD
The winners of the 2022 Champions event, LOUD are not among the first tier of favorites to win in Brazil. This, despite being a Brazilian team. The team is lower on the favorites list because of the number of changes the club went through during the offseason. Sacy, pANcada, and coach Matheus “bzkA” Tarasconi are gone. The new lineup is aspas, Less, Saadhak, cauanzin and tuyz. LOUD could play spoiler here, but without any real knowledge of how they will perform in competition, the jury is out on the team.
Best bet to win VALORANT Champions Tour 2023: LOCK//IN Sao Paulo
I expect Sentinels to play with a chip on their shoulder after the team failed last year. With that, my pick is for the American team to triumph in Brazil.
Pick: Sentinels to win the VALORANT Champions Tour 2023: LOCK//IN Sao Paulo.
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