It has been 1,088 days since an EMEA team lifted an international VALORANT trophy. Team Vitality wants to change that starting June 6 in London.

Masters London 2026 runs from June 6 to 21, bringing together 12 teams from across VCT Americas, Pacific, EMEA, and CN. For the EMEA faithful, the tournament represents something more than just another bracket. It’s a chance to snap a losing streak that has quietly become one of the most talked-about droughts in competitive VALORANT history.

How Vitality got here

Vitality earned their spot at Masters London through their performance in VCT EMEA Stage 1. A grueling 2-1 series victory against FUT Esports on June 8 was among the key results that punched their ticket to the international stage.

The EMEA region’s last international titles were clustered between 2021 and 2023, a period when the region was considered the undisputed heartbeat of competitive VALORANT. Since then, teams from the Americas and Pacific have dominated the trophy cabinet while EMEA has played the role of perpetual contender.

Crypto’s growing footprint in VALORANT esports

Coinbase became the exclusive crypto exchange and blockchain partner for Riot Games’ international esports events in May 2025. That deal covers both VALORANT and League of Legends competitions, making Coinbase a fixture at events like Masters London. The partnership includes fan engagement activations and giveaways, essentially putting crypto branding directly in front of millions of esports viewers.

On the team side, Polkadot has its own partnership with Team Vitality. The collaboration involves jersey branding and engagement technology solutions, meaning the Polkadot name travels everywhere Vitality competes. The deal was formalized through a two-year proposal, giving it a longer runway than a typical sponsorship activation.

Beyond official partnerships, crypto betting platforms like Cloudbet have offered wagering options on EMEA matches featuring Vitality. Supported tokens on such platforms include BTC, ETH, and USDT, giving crypto-native bettors direct access to esports action without converting to fiat first.

What this means for crypto investors watching esports

Coinbase’s partnership with Riot Games ties a publicly traded, regulated exchange to one of the biggest esports ecosystems on the planet. For investors tracking crypto adoption vectors, mainstream esports sponsorships represent a channel that reaches younger, tech-comfortable demographics at scale.

Polkadot’s team-level deal with Vitality offers a different lens. Rather than broad event sponsorship, this is a direct association between a Layer 1 blockchain project and a competitive brand. If Vitality wins Masters London, every highlight clip, every celebration, every post-match interview features Polkadot’s logo.