The biggest Arena of Valor (AoV) teams will once again compete under one stage as the Arena of Valor International Championship (AIC 2021) commences this November.

This year’s competition will have the highest prize pool in AIC history, doubling AIC 2020’s US$500,000 offering.

Here’s everything you need to know about AIC 2021 including its schedule, results, scores, format, participating teams, prize pool, and where to watch.

What is the AIC 2021?

dtac Talon Esports playing Arena of Valor.
Credit: Garena

The AIC 2021 is the fifth tournament under the AIC franchise. The tournament will remain to be an online event due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

What is the difference between AIC and AWC in Arena of Valor?

The difference between AIC and the Arena of Valor World Cup (AWC) lies in representation. Teams competing in AIC will represent their respective esports organizations. Meanwhile, teams competing in the AWC will play on behalf of their regions.

AIC 2021 schedule, scores, and results

The Arena of Valor International Championship (AIC 2021) schedule.
The full schedule of the Arena of Valor International Championship

Credit: Garena

AIC 2021 will run from November 27 to December 19.

The full AIC 2021 schedule is as follows:

  • Group Stages: November 27 to December 5
  • Quarterfinals: December 9 to 12
  • Semifinals: December 17 to 18
  • Grand finals: December 19

AIC 2021 Knockout Stage

December 9 — Day 1

TEAMSCORETEAM
V Gaming3 — 0Valencia CF eSports
Saigon Phantom3 — 2Buriram United Esports
Valencia CF eSports1 — 3Buriram United Esports

December 10 — Day 2

TEAMSCORETEAM
ONE Team3 — 0MAD Team
Talon Esports2 — 3Hong Kong Attitude
MAD Team0 — 3Talon Esports

December 11 — Day 3

TEAMSCORETEAM
V Gaming4 — 0Saigon Phantom
ONE Team0 — 4Hong Kong Attitude

December 12 — Day 4

TEAMSCORETEAM
ONE Team0 — 4Buriram United Esports
Saigon Phantom3 — 4Talon Esports

December 17 — Day 5

TEAMSCORETEAM
V Gaming4 — 1Hong Kong Attitude
Buriram United Esports4 — 2Talon Esports

December 18 — Day 6

TEAMSCORETEAM
Hong Kong Attitude3 — 4Buriram United Esports

December 19 — Day 7

TEAMSCORETEAM
V Gaming3 — 4Buriram United Esports

AIC 2021 Group Stage

November 27 — Day 1

TEAMSCORETEAM
Talon Esports2 — 0MAD Team
Team Olympus0 — 2V Gaming
MAD Team2 — 0X eSports
Talon Esports1 — 1Buriram United Esports
X eSports0 — 2AG Super Play
Buriram United Esports0 — 2V Gaming

November 28 — Day 2

TEAMSCORETEAM
Team Flash0 — 2Hong Kong Attitude
UndeRank0 — 2Valencia CF eSports
Hong Kong Attitude2 — 0ArchAngel
Team Flash1 — 1Saigon Phantom
ArchAngel0 — 2ONE Team
Saigon Phantom2 — 0Valencia CF eSports

November 29 — Day 3

TEAMSCORETEAM
Talon Esports2 — 0AG Super Play
Buriram United Esports2 — 0Team Olympus
AG Super Play0 — 2V Gaming
Talon Esports2 — 0Team Olympus
X eSports0 — 2V Gaming
Buriram United Esports2 — 0MAD Team

November 30 — Day 4

TEAMSCORETEAM
Saigon Phantom2 — 0ArchAngel
UndeRank0 — 2ONE Team
Hong Kong Attitude0 — 2Valencia CF eSports

December 2 — Day 5

TEAMSCORETEAM
Team Olympus0 — 2AG Super Play
Buriram United Esports2 — 0X eSports
MAD Team0 — 2V Gaming

December 3 — Day 6

TEAMSCORETEAM
Team Flash0 — 2ONE Team
Saigon Phantom2 — 0UndeRank
Hong Kong Attitude1 — 1ONE Team
Team Flash2 — 0UndeRank
ArchAngel0 — 2Valencia CF eSports
Saigon Phantom2 — 0Hong Kong Attitude

December 4 — Day 7

TEAMSCORETEAM
X eSports0 — 2Team Olympus
MAD Team2 — 0AG Super Play
Talon Esports2 — 0X eSports
MAD Team2 — 0Team Olympus
Buriram United Esports1 — 1AG Super Play
Talon Esports0 — 2V Gaming

December 5 — Day 8

TEAMSCORETEAM
ArchAngel2 — 0UndeRank
ONE Team2 — 0Valencia CF eSports
Team Flash1 — 1 ArchAngel
Hong Kong Attitude2 — 0UndeRank
Saigon Phantom0 — 2ONE Team
Team Flash2 — 0Valencia CF eSports

AIC 2021 format

Saigon Phantom at the Arena of Valor World Cup (AWC 2020).
Credit: Garena

The Group Stage will be played in a double round-robin format, with matches in best-of-two series. It will use the Global Ban-Pick Rules.

  • Winning 2-0 grants 3 points
  • Drawing 1-1 grants 1 point
  • Losing 0-2 grants no points

The top four teams from the Group Stage will qualify for the Knockout Stage.

The Knockout Stage will be played in a double elimination bracket. All matches will be in best-of-seven series except for the Knockout Stage Round 1 matches which will be in best-of-fives.

AIC 2021 participating teams

AIC 2021's team distribution.
Credit: Garena

A total of 14 teams will be participating in the tournament, taken from eight different regions.

REGIONTEAMS
Thailanddtac Talon Esports
Valencia CF eSports
Buriram United Esports
TaiwanONE Team
Hong Kong Attitude
MAD Team
VietnamSaigon Phantom
V Gaming
Team Flash
IndonesiaArchAngel
ChinaAG Super Play Guest Team
MalaysiaUndeRank
South KoreaTeam Olympus
JapanX eSports

AIC 2021 prize pool

AIC 2020 champions MAD Team raising their trophy.
Credit: Garena Lien Quan Mobile

The tournament will offer a total of US$1,000,000 prize pool, the highest in AIC history so far.

List of AIC champions throughout the years

YEARCHAMPION TEAMREGIONPRIZE
AIC 2017Still Moving Under GunfireTaiwanUS$200,000
AIC 2018J TeamTaiwanUS$250,000
AIC 2019Team Flash VietnamUS$200,000
AIC 2020MAD TeamTaiwanUS$200,000
AIC 2021Buriram United EsportsThailandUS$400,000

Where to watch AIC 2021?

AWC champions dtac Talon Esports
Credit: Garena RoV Thailand

Wanna know where to watch all the Arena of Valor action? Check out these channels.

REGIONWHERE TO WATCH
GlobalArena of Valor YouTube channel
ThailandGarena RoV Thailand YouTube channel
TaiwanGarena 傳說對決 YouTube channel
VietnamLiên Quân Mobile eSports – Garena YouTube channel
IndonesiaGarena AoV Indonesia YouTube channel

READ MORE: dtac Talon Esports are your AWC 2021 champions, bags US$200,000