Valve's delayed September ranking causes confusion for tournament organizers

Valve's delayed September ranking causes confusion for tournament organizers

Valve's September Regional Standings update has created complications for tournament organizers after arriving later than expected and apparently including results that should not have been part of the ranking period.

The issue affects tournament invites and seeding tied directly to Valve's official ranking system.

September ranking arrives late

Valve normally releases its monthly VRS update on the first Monday of each month.

The September ranking did not arrive on schedule.

That created problems for tournament organizers whose invite and seeding dates had already been set for September 7.

Under Valve's Tournament Operation Requirements, organizers are expected to use the most recent VRS available on the relevant invite or seeding date.

With no new ranking available at the expected time, some organizers faced the possibility of using the AUGUST standings instead.

Backdated ranking creates new problem

Valve eventually released the September update and backdated it to September 7.

However, HLTV reported that the ranking appears to use data from September 8.

That distinction matters because ESL Challenger S52 Europe Cup 6 had not finished on September 7 but was included in the new ranking calculations.

The additional results changed several teams' positions compared with rankings calculated using only data available on the intended date.

Tournament organizers already affected

The delayed release forced some organizers to improvise.

Roman Imperium Cup organizers said they used HLTV's rankings for invitations after receiving permission because their tournament was less than 48 hours away.

Valve's ranking remains the official system used for invites to many major Counter-Strike tournaments.

HLTV has contacted Valve seeking clarification on whether the September standings will be corrected.