Valorant Premier Explained: Divisions, Premier Score and Playoffs

Premier is Valorant's team mode. Instead of queuing Competitive on your own, you play a whole Stage with a fixed team of 5 to 7 players: matches every week, then a Playoff Tournament at the end. Win it and you move up a division. At the very top, the path leads all the way to Challengers.

This guide covers every division, how many points a match is worth, when you qualify for playoffs and how promotion works. Current as of October 21, 2026, the day the new V26A6 Stage starts. All rules come from Riot's official VALORANT support pages.

All Premier divisions in order

Premier has 6 divisions. The lower four are split into 5 tiers each. From lowest to highest:

1. 06 Invite no tiers
2. 05 Contender no tiers
3. 04 Elite 1–5
4. 03 Advanced 1–5
5. 02 Intermediate 1–5
6. 01 Open 1–5

According to Riot, smaller zones may have fewer tiers per division.

Who can play Premier?

Before you can create or join a team, Riot requires three things:

1. SMS verification. Your phone number has to be linked to your Riot account, and each number works for exactly one account. If you're already verified for League of Legends Clash, that counts for Premier too. Internet numbers such as Google Voice don't work.
2. Placements. You must have finished your Competitive placement matches at some point on your account. Our Valorant ranks guide explains how that works.
3. An account in good standing. Bans and restrictions make you ineligible for a period of time, AFK penalties included. Pick up a penalty mid-Stage and you can't play for the rest of that Stage.

Premier is PC only. Pros on an active Challengers or international league roster can't take part.

Creating a team: 5 to 7 players, one zone

A Premier team has 5 to 7 players, and you can only be on one team at a time. The creator becomes the owner and can name a captain, who can also invite and remove players.

• Name and tag: team name 5 to 15 characters, tag 1 to 5 characters. You can't change them after creation. The only fix is deleting and recreating the team, ideally before your first match.
• Zone: you only play teams from your zone. Germany, Austria and Switzerland have the DACH zone (Frankfurt server). Your zone locks with your first match of the Stage.
• Join any time: according to Riot, teams can be created at any point during a Stage and start playing at the next available match slot.

Provisional division: where your team starts

When you create a team, and at the start of every Stage, your team gets a provisional division. It's based on the Competitive MMR of the team's top 5 players. If the players are far apart in skill, the best player's MMR counts more.

While the division is provisional, you can invite anyone. Once you finish your first match of the Stage, the division locks. After that, nobody can join who would push the team up a division.

Weekly matches and Premier Score

A regular Stage has 7 weeks of weekly matches. Each week you play up to 2 matches, best of 1, all on that week's fixed map. Each player can play at most 2 Premier matches per week.

Matches run on a schedule: on match days, a 1-hour queue window opens in the evening in your zone's time zone. If you're not in queue, you miss it. Exact times are in the Premier tab in the client. On some non-match days there's a practice queue that doesn't award points.

Each weekly match awards Premier Score:

Matches use Competitive rules, plus tactical timeouts and a special overtime: the team that reached 12 round wins first picks the side. Two overtime sets follow and, if needed, one final sudden death round. There are no draws.

Playoffs: 600 points gets you in

From Open to Elite, every team with at least 600 Premier Score qualifies for playoffs. Standings don't matter for qualification. More points only get you better seeding.

A quick calculation from the numbers above: 7 weeks give you at most 14 matches. 6 wins already add up to 600 points. 4 wins and 8 losses also get you there: 400 + 200 = 600. Showing up every week earns points even when you lose.

The threshold can change for shorter Stages. In the five-week V26A5 Stage, the patch notes set it at 450 points. The current threshold is on the Standings page.

How the tournament works from Open to Elite:

• Single elimination: lose once and you're out.
• Up to 8 teams per bracket, or as few as 2 depending on who queues.
• The queue window is only 15 minutes. Miss it and you're not in.
• All matches are best of 1 and played on the same day, with at least 5 minutes of rest in between.
• Every match starts with map pick and ban. The team that didn't pick the map chooses the side.
• No subs: the 5 players from your first tournament match stay locked in until the end.

Promotion and demotion

From Open to Elite, the only way up is winning your playoff bracket. Your new division will be at least one higher, or more if you add stronger players. Note: the promotion only applies to the very next Stage. Skip a Stage and you may lose it.

According to Riot, teams are not demoted for poor results. Your team can still land in a lower provisional division if the roster changes or your Competitive performance drops.

Contender and Invite: the path to Challengers

The top two divisions work differently:

• Eligibility required: players need Contender Eligibility. You earn it in the current or previous Stage by doing one of these: reaching Immortal 3 or higher peak rank, playing a match on a Contender or Invite team, or playing a playoff match in Elite 5. Five eligible players guarantee a spot in Contender.
• Strict matchmaking: you never face the same team twice in a Stage. If no opponent is found, you get a bye.
• Playoffs by standings: there's no 600-point line here. You need to finish among the top teams. Rounds 1 and 2 are best of 1, the final is best of 3. Rounds are spread over several days, and you can sub players from your roster between rounds.
• Challengers: the top teams from each Invite division get the chance to reach their region's Challengers League. The DACH zone feeds into Challengers DACH.

V26A6 Stage: dates and maps

According to the official VALORANT account on X, the new Stage runs from October 21 to December 5, 2026, with playoffs on December 6. The weekly maps:

Queue windows differ by zone. You'll find yours in the Premier tab.

Tips for your Premier Stage

• Block your match nights. The window is 1 hour, and only 15 minutes in the tournament. Plan ahead.
• Practice the map of the week. Only one map is in play each week. The practice queue doesn't count for points and is good for testing.
• Run a 6 or 7-player roster. Each player can only play 2 matches a week. Subs save match nights.
• Set the roster before your first match. After that the division locks, and stronger players can't join.
• Avoid penalties. A restriction mid-Stage costs that player the rest of the Stage.
• Use your timeouts. Premier gives you tactical timeouts. A clear mic on every player is what makes them useful.

Recommended hardware for Premier

Premier means playing as a fixed team with constant callouts. A headset with a clear mic helps more than any RGB lighting. Starting points:

• Gaming headset buying guide
• Gaming mouse buying guide
• Gaming microphone buying guide

Three example products (manufacturer specs, not our own tests):

308 g (320 g with mic)

Example model

Wired headset for PC and console: HyperX Cloud III

Connection

3.5 mm, USB-C and USB-A

Drivers

53 mm, angled

Microphone

detachable, 10 mm, noise-cancelling, LED mute

Weight

308 g (320 g with mic)

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59 g

Example model

Lightweight wired mouse for right-handers: Razer DeathAdder V3

Sensor

Razer Focus Pro, up to 30,000 DPI

Polling rate

up to 8,000 Hz

Weight

59 g

Shape

ergonomic, right-handed

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Example model

Mouse pad for aim duels: Razer Gigantus V2 Medium

A soft cloth pad in Medium that also fits smaller desks. More in the mouse pad buying guide.

Size

360 × 275 × 3 mm

Surface

textured micro-weave (soft)

Base

non-slip rubber / foam

Model no.

RZ02-03330200-R3M1

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FAQ

How many points do you need for Premier playoffs?

In a regular Stage, 600 Premier Score from Open to Elite. A win gives 100 points, a loss 25.

What are the divisions in Valorant Premier?

Open, Intermediate, Advanced and Elite with 5 tiers each, then Contender and Invite at the top.

Can you get demoted in Premier?

Not for poor results. If your roster changes or your Competitive MMR drops, your provisional division at the start of the next Stage can be lower.

How many players does a Premier team need?

5 to 7. Five play each match, and each player can play at most 2 matches per week.

Do you need a certain rank to play Premier?

No. You need SMS verification, finished placements and an account in good standing. Only Contender and Invite have requirements such as Immortal 3.

Is Premier available on console?

No. According to the VALORANT Wiki, Premier is PC only.

For how solo ranks work, see our Valorant ranks guide. For team comms, check the gaming headset buying guide and the gaming microphone buying guide.

Sources

Current as of October 21, 2026. Rules come from Riot Games' official VALORANT support:

• VALORANT Support – Premier: Divisions
• VALORANT Support – Premier: Team Hub & Score
• VALORANT Support – Premier: Playoff Tournaments
• Riot Support – Premier: Contender & Invite Divisions
• VALORANT Support – Riot Tournament Modes: SMS Verification
• VALORANT Support – Premier: team creation and management (Spanish)
• VALORANT Wiki – Premier (zones, weekly matches, overtime, PC only)
• VALORANT on X – Premier Stage V26A6 schedule
• Hotspawn – Patch Notes 13.04 (V26A5 Stage with 450 points)

Riot tweaks Premier almost every Stage. When something changes, we'll update this guide.