In the European League of League of Legends, the Summer Split has been over since the end of June and one team hasn’t had a good time for a while: Rogue. Allegedly, they are selling their LEC spot.
Which team is it about? The European team Rogue has been playing in the LEC since 2019. Initially, the team performed rather mediocre. In 2022, they managed to win 3:0 in the finals against Team G2 in the Summer Split playoffs, thus becoming LEC champions. They have also participated in Worlds in 2021, 2022, and 2023. However, they had no significant successes there.
In 2022, Rogue merged with the Spanish team KOI. However, at the end of 2023, the merger was reversed – it hasn’t gone well since 2022. In the last three seasons, the team finished second to last twice in the LEC, and in the most recent split, they even came in last. Now the team is reportedly planning to sell their LEC spot. (via Leaguepedia)
In Germany, HandOfBlood’s team is finally on the rise:
There are already interested parties
What rumors are there? After the separation from KOI, Rogue’s parent company, Infinite Reality, had four teams remaining. However, they have since given up their Rocket League team and their Rainbow Six team.
Sheep Esports has received information from several sources that Rogue is considering selling their LEC spot as well. Sheep Esports does not provide specific details about the sources, referring to internal sources
.
Who is Sheep Esports? The site is run by former investigative journalist Brieuc Seeger, who has been reporting on the LEC scene for years and has been correct in his leaks multiple times in the past. Among others here: LoL: Former ADC legend of Fnatic switches to T1, German streamer says it’s a “marketing move”
Who is in the race for the spot? The first candidate for the spot is allegedly Team Falcon. Team Falcon is a Saudi Arabian organization that tried to acquire the LEC spot from Astralis in 2022. This spot was then taken by Karmine Corp in 2023. After the separation from KOI, Team Falcon is said to have tried to make a deal with Infinite Reality. Currently, according to Sheep Esports, both teams are reportedly in negotiations again.
Other teams are also said to have shown interest.
Basically, it doesn’t seem to be about the money. Infinite Reality bought a tech company for 450 million dollars and Rogue signed a deal with mid laner Larssen last year that goes until 2027. Team Falcon in the LEC would likely be viewed negatively by many spectators, as the big tournament from Saudi Arabia attracted fewer viewers than other tournaments: LoL: 40 of the best players in the world compete in a tournament for a high prize pool – Yet hardly anyone notices
