In a collaboration between G FUEL, Nerd Street Gamers, Spectacor Gaming, T1 and Riot Games, the FTW Summer Showdown Valorant Ignition Series tournament will pit the best all-women teams against each other, with $50,000 in prizing up for grabs.
Valorant esports has got off to a flyer already in 2020, as Riot Games has supported third-party tournaments, and some of the biggest organizations in esports are already fielding teams.
The FTW (For The Women) Summer Showdown is giving a chance for the best women’s teams to shine, with eight professional rosters and four amateur teams to secure through a qualifier.
FTW Summer Showdown: Format
The tournament split the 12 teams into two groups, with the top four teams from each group advancing to the Playoffs. The Playoffs put the top eight into a single-elimination bracket to decide the ultimate winner.
Single-elimination means there will be no second chances — lose a match and you’re out!
FTW Summer Showdown: Group Stages
Following the best-of-one Group Stage matches on September 11, here’s how both respective groups finished.
Group A
| Position | Team | Map count | Round count |
| 1 | MAJKL | 5-0 | 65-8 |
| 2 | hamboigas | 4-1 | 54-21 |
| 3 | Dignitas Female | 3-2 | 45-37 |
| 4 | Hardstuck | 2-3 | 37-52 |
| 5 | Zenith | 1-4 | 30-53 |
| 6 | GFuel Krabby Patties | 0-5 | 5-65 |
Group B
| Position | Team | Map count | Round count |
| 1 | GX3 | 5-0 | 67-40 |
| 2 | silhouette | 4-1 | 63-41 |
| 3 | Flawless | 3-2 | 54-39 |
| 4 | Sailor Scouts | 2-3 | 45-49 |
| 5 | Chick Fil Ayy | 1-4 | 47-57 |
| 6 | Bloom | 0-5 | 15-65 |
FTW Summer Showdown: Playoffs
After an enthralling Group Stage, eight team made it through to the single-elimination Playoffs. The best-of-three bracket can be found below.
Saturday, September 12
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| Round | Match | Map 1 | Map 2 | Map 3 |
| Quarterfinals | MAJKL 2 – 0 Sailor Scouts | 13-2 | 13-2 | – |
| silhouette 0 – 2 Dignitas Female | 2-13 | 7-13 | – | |
| GX3 2 – 0 Hardstuck | 13-6 | 13-3 | – | |
| hamboigas 2 – 0 Flawless | 13-0 | 13-5 | – |
Sunday, September 13
| Round | Match | Map 1 | Map 2 | Map 3 |
| Semifinals | MAJKL 2 – 0 Dignitas Female | 13-7 | 13-5 | – |
| GX3 2 – 0 hamboigas | 13-1 | 13-9 | – | |
| Grand Final | MAJKL 2 – 0 GX3 | 13-3 | 13-11 | – |
FTW Summer Showdown: Final placements
| Placing | Team | Prize money (USD) |
| 1st | MAJKL | $25,000 |
| 2nd | GX3 | $15,000 |
| 3rd | hamboigas | $7,500 |
| 4th | Dignitas Female | $2,500 |
| 5th – 8th | Sailor Scouts | – |
| silhouette | ||
| Hardstuck | ||
| Flawless | ||
| 9th – 10th | Zenith | – |
| Chick Fil Ayy | ||
| 11th – 12th | Bloom | – |
| GFuel Krabby Patties |
FTW Summer Showdown: Stream
The event took place on September 11 to 13, streamed live on the Nerd Street Gamers Twitch Channel.
- Read More: Valorant rostermania – All teams and players
An all-female Valorant teams qualifier took place on Saturday, September 5 to decide the four amateur teams that would participate alongside the invitees. This event boasted its own $1,000 prize pool as well.
What is FTW?
For The Women is Spectacor Gaming’s initiative to support the growth of women in esports, through competition as well as content. “The whole mission of FTW is to get women together across all sectors of esports to pave the way for the next generation of gamers,” said Spectacor Gaming Communications Manager Kelsey Rowley.
There are also plans to host more FTW tournaments in different games, but Valorant has been chosen as there’s lots of hype around it still. “The hype for Valorant is so big across the entire industry, and it’s such a badass game,” said Paige Funk of Nerd Street Gamers, “I think it’ll showcase some badass female talent.”
Nerd St Gamers came on board to help with the running of FTW’s first esports tournament, the Valorant Summer Showdown, and the event has also secured sponsorship from G FUEL and T1.
And G FUEL isn’t just coming on as a sponsor, as five ambassadors from G FUEL will also be competing. G FUEL’s CEO Cliff Morgan said: “Spectacor Gaming and Nerd Street Gamers have been leading a powerful initiative to elevate women in gaming, and we’re honored to support their efforts as a partner of their first FTW tournament. We’re looking forward to a memorable event and milestone for women gamers.”