In the American e-sports scene for League of Legends, there are currently many disruptions. Professional players are striking for the preservation of the so-called Academy teams, which are meant to support the development of new talent. Riot Games has therefore postponed the start of the season by two weeks but is also issuing an ultimatum for the World Championship.
What is the problem?
- In America, teams in the highest league, LCS, have previously been required to field an Academy team to train new talent in the NACL, essentially the second division. This requirement has not existed in Europe for some time, but most teams form a second team voluntarily, such as SK Gaming Prime in Germany or Vitality.Bee in France.
- However, the developmental teams cost money, as players and coaches need to be paid, and match days must be organized. Therefore, the franchises of the LCS have officially requested the removal of the clause regarding Academy teams.
- Riot Games approved this request in May. Subsequently, 7 out of 10 teams announced their withdrawal from the NACL. This decision could affect over 70 jobs for players and coaches (via Twitter).
- The LCS Player Association, which advocates for the rights of players, called for a strike, and the professional players complied. More than 50% supported the strike and did not want to participate in the league’s start.
Riot Games has now officially commented on the strike. They are temporarily postponing the start of the LCS, but if the teams are unable to field a complete roster, the league could face cancellation.
Then no team from America would be able to participate in Worlds 2023.
Riot Games Gives Teams Two Weeks
What exactly does Riot Games say? The summer season of the LCS was originally scheduled to start tomorrow, June 1. However, the start has now been postponed by two weeks to June 15. These two weeks are intended for the teams to resolve the issues and field an active roster.
If this fails, severe consequences may follow:
We hope that this two-week time frame allows for productive dialogue between the LCSPA, the teams, and the league, so that we can resume LCS competition this summer. The LCS will not penalize teams for not fielding their rosters during these two weeks, allowing everyone to focus on constructive dialogue. We are doing our best to ensure that LCS staff, contractors, and others who support the LCS are not adversely affected by the delay.
A delay beyond the two-week window would make it nearly impossible to conduct a legitimate competition, and in that case, we would be prepared to cancel the entire LCS summer season. If the LCS summer season is canceled, no LCS teams will qualify for the World Championship 2023. I want to be clear: This is not an outcome we would wish for, but unfortunately, it is the reality to ensure a fair, competitive global system.
Naz Aletaha via LoL Esports
What does Riot Games say about the Academy teams? The developers want to continue to emphasize an active second league, but they believe that it can function without the help of major franchises like TSM, CLG, or Cloud9.
They find the Academy model “ineffective” and prefer to make the league attractive to fresh teams. Therefore, the NACL has been granted an additional budget of 300,000 dollars per team for the upcoming season.
With this, they aim to emulate the model in Europe and Korea. In Europe, for instance, there is a type of “second league” for each region, from which the best teams can qualify for the EU Masters. In Germany, that is the Prime League, where teams like Schalke 04, Eintracht Frankfurt, and also the LoL team of HandOfBlood – Eintracht Spandau compete.
“Every team received 3 million dollars, but only 3 used it for the NACL”
How does the Players Association respond? They view Riot Games’ statement as a partial success. It is clear that players play an important role in the LCS and cannot simply be overlooked in decision-making.
They have now requested daily meetings with Riot Games to find a quick solution (via Twitter).
However, they also requested that other players do not step in if they are asked by teams for a substitute roster. This is said to have already happened behind the scenes. All players in America would benefit from the strike. Stepping in would undermine this goal and jeopardize the future of all professional players.
Overall, the LCSPA sees the mistakes primarily on the side of the American franchises. At the start of the year, Riot Games gave each LCS team 3 million dollars to improve their financial situation. However, only three teams apparently used the money to retain their Academy teams (via Twitter).
These teams are FlyQuest, Team Liquid, and Evil Geniuses. Despite placing 7th, 9th, and 13th in the NACL, they still maintain their developmental teams.
For the American scene, a major change is also looming in 2024. TSM, which has been an important part since the inception of League of Legends, will disband its team to move to a stronger region:
LoL: USA loses its most important team – CEO explains in video why
