It's been years since Riot let a third party organize a League of Legends esports event. But it seems that with demand for more international events still being there, they're looking into partnering with Saudi Arabia to make it happen.
For years now, League of Legends fans have been asking for more international League of Legends esports competitions. While Riot did try to add more events with Rift Rivals, there haven't been any that have come close to MSI and Worlds, but all that could change.
In an attempt to add more international competition, Riot might be partnering with the Saudi state-backed Esports World Cup in 2024 to add one more international competition to the event calendar.
LoL: Riot Might Partner With Third-Party Esports Organizer
After running a $45M esports tournament in 2023, the Saudi Arabian government's won over the largest publisher in the industry: Riot Games.
— Jacob Wolf (@JacobWolf) January 2, 2024
The Esports World Cup is set to feature a League of Legends tournament this summer, per an internal email.
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The last time Riot partnered with a third-party organizer for an esports event was all the way back in 2017 when League of Legends was still part of the Intel Extreme Masters League event in Poland. That was seven years ago already, and since then Riot has held exclusive tournament rights over their IP.
It seems that after Gamers8 put on a huge esports event with a $45 million prize pool featuring games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Rocket League, Fortnite, Street Fighter, Rainbow Six: Siege, they have won the trust of Riot.
In July, the Esports World Cup is set to take place and League of Legends will be a part of it, according to Jacob Wolf Report, who obtained an internal Riot Games email.
There is not much information on the tournament yet, but it looks like two teams from each domestic region will be able to participate in the event and Riot isn't going to dictate which teams will represent their region. During the time of the Esports World Cup, the domestic leagues will halt activity.
The Esports World Cup is set to take place for eight weeks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and is expected to feature the largest prize pool in esports history. The League of Legends portion of the event should take place in early July at the start of the tournament, so the domestic pauses coincide with the July break Riot employees usually enjoy for July 4.
This will be a huge esports event, but fans are skeptical and have expressed criticisms. This isn't the first time Riot has dabbled in partnerships with Saudi Arabia, with the LEC partnering with city development NEOM in 2020, which was quickly cancelled after fan outrage. Will the Esports World Cup be met with the same resistance, or will Riot push through with this partnership?