Tournament organizer MistGames announced Monday that it has officially changed the name of its Valorant league for Northern Europe, Challengers Northern Europe: Polaris, to the more palatable name of Challengers North: Polaris.
The Valorant Challengers league for Northern Europe also undergoes a bit of a graphical makeover as well, heading into Split 2, which begins May 16.
“The name ‘Challengers Northern Europe: Polaris’ always felt too long and was difficult for people to use. Our goal with our name change to ‘Challengers North: Polaris’ is to simplify our name for future viewers,” MistGames Social Media & Esports Strategy Manager Bo “BoDork” Hoogland told The Esports Advocate on Friday. “With our changes in brand identity, we wanted to emphasize that this is a fresh new start for Northern Europe which we will build on even more next year.”
The new look and name will be represented on social media beginning Monday and on upcoming broadcasts, but it is virtually the same competition for teams competing in Valorant Challengers in the UK, Ireland, and Nordics. MistGames is the officially recognized tournament operator/licensee of Riot Games for Valorant Challengers in Northern Europe.
Other tweaks and changes to the league are planned for 2025, according to Hoogland, but he did not elaborate further on what those changes might be.
Speaking with Esports News UK on Monday, Hoogland said that the soft launch of these changes is to “get the word out” ahead of Split 2.
“This is not the same league as it was before and I hope we can send that message with these changes. For Split 2 we’ll also be adding player cams which we hope will make the viewing experience even better,” he told Esports News UK, adding “We’re not satisfied with our product as we know we can do more, we’re just limited this year due to how late we took over.”