Valorant Pick'Ems for Champions Shanghai 2026 is Riot's free bracket prediction game: you predict the group stage and playoffs and earn a title, two gun buddies or a rare "100%" title by global rank. Both pick windows are closed (playoffs locked on 7 October), so on 9 October all that is left is tracking your score.
Valorant Pick'Ems 2026 at a glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Event | VALORANT Champions 2026, Shanghai (24 September to 18 October) |
| Where to pick | VALORANT client (Esports tab), Riot Mobile, valorantesports.com/pickems |
| Group stage window | Opened 10 September, locked 24 September at about 2:10 AM PT |
| Playoffs window | Opened 4 October, locked 7 October at about 2:10 AM PT |
| Leaderboard | One global ranking combining both stages |
| Rewards delivered | After the tournament concludes |
| Prize pool (teams) | $2,250,000, with $1,000,000 for the winner |
How to vote in Valorant Pick'Ems
Riot runs Pick'Ems in three places, and your picks sync across all of them because they are tied to your Riot account.
- Open the Esports tab in the VALORANT client, the Riot Mobile app, or go to valorantesports.com/pickems.
- Sign in with the Riot account you play on. Rewards go to that account only.
- For the group stage, rank the four teams in each group. For the playoffs, click the winner of every match in the double elimination bracket, through to the grand final.
- Save before the lock time. Once a stage locks, picks cannot be edited.
Pick'Ems is not available in every country. Riot's announcement excludes Cuba, North Korea, Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Myanmar and regions where VALORANT has a local publisher (mainland China is one), and notes that reward eligibility can vary by local law.
Every Pick'Ems reward and how to get it
The rewards are cumulative. Finish in the top 20% and you also get the top 50% buddy and the participation title.
| Reward | Type | Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| "Calculated" | Player title | Make any picks (participation) |
| Stone of Heaven | Gun buddy | Top 50% of the global leaderboard |
| Pick'Ems Master: Stone of Heaven | Golden gun buddy | Top 20% of the global leaderboard |
| "100%" | Player title | Perfect picks across both stages |
The Calculated title does not depend on accuracy. You earn it the moment you submit your first group stage picks. The two buddies depend only on where you rank against everyone else, not on a fixed points total.
Some third-party guides list a spray or a "Make a Pick" title as the participation reward. Riot's own Pick'Ems page names the "Calculated" title, so go by that.
Free Champions rewards outside Pick'Ems
Riot's Watch and Earn program runs alongside Pick'Ems and needs no predictions at all:
- "Prepared" title: watch 30+ minutes of an official broadcast during Groups and Playoffs.
- "Stamp of Approval" spray: watch 30+ minutes of the grand final.
- Shotcall on Twitch desktop: "The Catch" title at 50 points, "Crab Buddy" gun buddy at 300 points, "Trophy" player card for a top 3% finish on any map.
How Pick'Ems scoring works
Riot's summary is simple: pick who you think will win and earn points when you are right. Both stages feed one leaderboard, so a strong group stage can carry a weak playoff bracket, and the reverse.
Group stage
Sixteen teams played in four groups of four, all best of three, with the top two in each group advancing. You ranked each group from first to fourth. Correctly naming the advancing teams earned base points, and getting the exact order earned bonus points.
Playoffs
The playoffs are an eight-team double elimination bracket. Every series is best of three except the lower bracket final and the grand final, which are best of five. Third-party guides report that later rounds carry more points than round one. Riot's announcement does not publish exact per-round values, so treat any specific point table you see as unconfirmed.
The buddies are relative rewards. When a favourite everyone backed loses early, the whole field drops points together, so your rank (the only thing that decides the Stone of Heaven buddies) barely moves. A bracket that "looks ruined" can still finish top 20%.
Where Champions Shanghai stands on 9 October
That blockquote matters this year. Both group winners from Groups A and C, 100 Thieves and Paper Rex, lost their opening playoff series 2 to 0, which hurt a huge share of brackets at once.
Group stage qualifiers
| Group | 1st | 2nd |
|---|---|---|
| A | 100 Thieves | T1 |
| B | Team Vitality | LOUD |
| C | Paper Rex | G2 Esports |
| D | NRG | Nongshim RedForce |
Playoff results and schedule
- Upper round 1 (7 October): NRG beat T1 2 to 0, LOUD beat Paper Rex 2 to 0.
- Upper round 1 (8 October): G2 Esports beat 100 Thieves 2 to 0, Team Vitality beat Nongshim RedForce 2 to 1.
- Lower round 1 (9 October): T1 vs Paper Rex, 100 Thieves vs Nongshim RedForce. Losers are eliminated.
- Upper semifinals (10 October): NRG vs LOUD, G2 Esports vs Team Vitality.
- Upper final: 16 October. The lower bracket runs through 17 October.
- Grand final: 18 October at the Mercedes-Benz Arena, Shanghai.
NRG are the defending champions and still sit in the upper bracket. This is also the last Champions of the franchised era, since VCT moves to an open qualifier format in 2027.
Tips for the next Pick'Ems
- Lock early. Windows are short. The playoff window this year was open for only three days, from 4 to 7 October.
- Do not copy the consensus everywhere. Rank is relative, so one well-reasoned upset pick separates you from the pack if it lands.
- Weight later rounds. If late rounds are worth more, getting your finalists right matters more than any round one series.
- Check form, not reputation. Group results (who topped which group, and against whom) are the best recent evidence you get before playoffs.
Pick'Ems is also tied into other Champions content. Completing your Pick'Ems was a weekly mission in Riot's Alpha vs Omega "Frag or Die" faction event, which runs to 20 October. For agent, map and skin guides, see our Valorant guide hub.
Frequently asked questions
Can I still make Valorant Pick'Ems picks?
No. Group stage picks locked on 24 September and playoff picks locked on 7 October at about 2:10 AM PT. If you picked earlier, your score keeps updating until the grand final on 18 October.
When do Pick'Ems rewards arrive?
Riot grants Pick'Ems rewards after the tournament concludes, so expect them in your collection some time after the 18 October grand final rather than during the event.
Do I need a perfect bracket to get the Stone of Heaven buddy?
No. The Stone of Heaven buddy goes to the top 50% of the global leaderboard and the golden Pick'Ems Master version to the top 20%. Only the "100%" title needs perfect picks.
Is the Calculated title given to everyone?
Yes, to every eligible participant. You earn it by submitting picks, regardless of how many turn out to be correct.
Does Pick'Ems work if I play in China?
No. Riot's rules exclude regions where VALORANT has a local publisher, plus Cuba, North Korea, Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk and Myanmar.
Get a Valorant account ready for Champions
Want a Valorant account with the skins and agents already unlocked before the next VCT season? Browse hand-checked Valorant accounts on METAMMO. Every account is verified by hand before listing and comes with a lifetime warranty against recovery by the original owner.
Sources
- VALORANT Esports: Champions Shanghai Pick'Ems powered by AWS (September 2026)
- VALORANT Esports: Champions Shanghai Watch and Earn (September 2026)
- Wikipedia: 2026 Valorant Champions (updated 8 October 2026)
- VLR.gg: Valorant Champions 2026 bracket and results (October 2026)
- Strafe: Champions 2026 Group Stage Pick'Ems guide (September 2026)
- VNGGames: Pick'Em Champions Shanghai 2026 guide (September 2026)
