Can a new format salvage the LCS?

It started as a rumor a short while ago and now we have seemingly received confirmation from people within. The LCS is looking to adopt the newly changed LEC format as soon as the 2024 season. With Riot Games planning to implement a third international event, it seems that more levels of competition will implement the system. But given the LCS’s recent performance and with talks of teams like TSM and Dignitas selling their LCS slots following the CLG transfer, can Riot Games hope to save the LCS with 1 change?

LCS will adopt LEC format in 2024

Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles first reported on the topic during an episode of his joint-hosted podcast called Summoning Insight with Duncan “Thorin” Shields which focuses on League of Legends topics. Just recently another League of Legends esports personality in Travis Gafford also expanded on the topic on his Hotline League podcast, being accompanied by Cloud9 top laner Fudge and Mark “MarkZ” Zimmerman, who is a League of Legends esports personality and LCS analyst. So with credible sources bringing the topic to attention, what does it really mean for the LCS?

Well the 3 split format change for the LEC was well received but when viewership numbers came back, they were a bit worrying. Riot is reportedly trying to implement this format in all League of Legends competitions, as they look to implement a third international event in the yearly schedule. The MSI and Worlds format changes are also welcomed, but the LCS issues originate a lot deeper than a format change.

Can Riot Games save the LCS and League of Legends?

The change comes in a long line of attempts by Riot Games to save League of Legends esports in North America and preserve the founding structure of their competitions. The game that made Riot Games what it is, is hemorrhaging funds left and right. We already covered the departure of the CLG brand, and this all comes after the changes that happened in the previous off-season. With Riot Games turning their attention to Valorant franchising in multiple regions across the world, their League of Legends department received less money and attention. 

If you look past the horrible cinematic and the outcry it created, the schedule changes Riot implemented to their League of Legends broadcasts signaled Riot’s true intentions. League of Legends in the Western Hemisphere underwent a lot of changes, especially in the LEC and NLC. But most relevant to the topic, the LCS broadcast was moved from the weekends on Sundays and Saturdays, to Thursdays and Fridays. Shifting in a working week broadcast already damages accessibility, but they also went a step further and scheduled the broadcast to start at 12 PM Pacific and 3 PM ET. With the most popular games being scheduled to kick off the competition, you would need to catch the LCS on a lunch break or driving towards home, which is never optimal. 

LCS on-air talent loses Dash

This came and passed and the lack of response from LCS owners at the time meant that they have most likely accepted their fate. The LCS itself suffered a massive talent drain, both on air and in the game. The LCS hasn’t been competitive on an international level expected of a major region for a long time, and only one of their 15 best representatives during the 2022 season was born in the USA. With multiple legends in the community retiring, the interest in the LCS is just not there anymore.

The on-air talent is also suffering, with Phreakl moving to Riot to work as a game designer. James “Dash” Patterson, who was the full-time LCS host for the last 10 years, was seemingly let go without a notice just a few weeks after winning the Esports Host of the Year award for 2022. And while Riot Games Is neglecting League of Legends as a whole, the teams inside of it are doing their best to stay afloat.

TSM Consider Exiting LCS

We already covered how the FTX scandal torpedoed TSM’s financial stability, given the crypto giant was set to invest over 200 million in the esports organization. With those funds going aout the window, TSM alongside other organizations like 100 Thieves, Dignitas, The Guard, and many more started cutting labor costs. This recession affected the entire tech market, so there was virtually no way gaming could avoid the contraction. But we never knew how bad it was until CLG ceased to exist as a brand. With them closing operations apart from their League department which was sold to NRG, it seems this is a larger problem. 

Sport Bussines Journal recently reported that TSM is looking to follow in the same footsteps, with their LCS slot being offered to the highest bidder. And with Travis Gafford reporting that their LCS players were offered the minimum LCS wage of $75 000 a year with 24 hours to respond if they were to remain in TSM during the summer, one begins to ask the hard questions. If TSM and CLG, the pillars of the LCS are going belly up, what does the future hold for the rest? Well TSM’s General Manager made a comment on the statement, but top laner Solo already said he is retiring against his will and their mid laner just got removed from the global contract database.

Kevin Hitt’s recent report quote tweeting Bjergsen’s retirement video went under the radar. He claims that 100 Thieves and Dignitas are also making their LCS rosters available. Combining this with Evil Geniuses firing even more people and the viewership continuing its downward spiral, what can Riot do to save the LCS? 

Bjergsen retires from esports

The week of fireworks in the LCS didn’t stop there. The greatest LCS player of time and TSM legend, mid laner Søren “Bjergsen”  Bjerg, has retired from esports. Bjergsen initially retired from playing after the TSM debacle at the 2020 World Championship and instead took up a coaching role within the team. The 2021 iteration of TSM didn’t perform as expected, so by 2022 he was back in the mid lane for Team Liquid alongside Hans Sama and Bwipo. That super team managed to underperform even more severely, missing the 2023 World Championship by failing to top 3 in any of the splits. It appears that this split on 100 Thieves was his last rodeo, and he will be taking a break to evaluate his next move.

This is understandable considering the amount of time he has dedicated to this game, and he also owns a part of TSM. If the ship is sinking, its good for Bjergsen to take a moment and think about his future, given that TSM is pulling out of esports and is focusing on the Blitz app and their lifestyle brand.  With the exit of Bjergsen, Doublelift, Sneaky, and other LCS brands that are widely recognized and nobody coming in to replace them apart from Blaber, the future of the LCS has dim lighting.