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The Chinese League of Legends Pro League will become the first to adopt a franchise model; a move which could bode well for the esport’s long-lasting profitability. All teams who qualified for the 2017 Summer Split have guaranteed spots in the new relegation-free system, and there are plans to expand the number of teams to 14 in 2018, and 20 TBD.
The announcement appeared on the lolesports official Weibo account, and was reported by Wanplus journalist Bryan Yu. Later, LPL reporter Sheng Yi confirmed the news with two additional details: the LPL will move to a Home & Away city-based structure, comparable to that of the Overwatch League, and that the LoL Secondary Pro League and TGA will amalgamate into a single development league (producing one LPL team per year).
BIG news,LPL will start Franchising in Summer Split.
14 teams(2 more teams),20 teams in the future.
City based system in 2018 (Home & Away). pic.twitter.com/2RNqojQig1— Sheng Yi (@Marco_YS35) April 30, 2017
It was only last week that Riot Games alluded to an overhaul of the NA LCS in 2018, where organizations would be given permanent spots per an application process (i.e. franchising). No confirmation has yet been provided on whether franchising will be adopted in other regions.
The threat of relegation has left even the best performing teams in a constant state of worry. H2K and Team SoloMid previously voiced their concerns over how a single split loss could affect team stability and brand recognition, and in August 2016, NRG Esports released their entire LoL roster after they fell from the NA LCS.
[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Abolishing relegation would make pro-LoL circuits more financially tenable, but there are worries about how amateur leagues will cope.[/perfectpullquote]
Abolishing relegation would make pro-LoL circuits more financially tenable, but there are worries about how amateur leagues will cope. As reported by PVP Live last year, the loss of auto-relegation made it harder for Challenger Series teams to grind their teeth in LCS-level environments. Of course, with the monthly stipend for LCS players removed, Riot is free to devote more resources into the pockets of the Challenger Series organisers, or the academy players themselves, as argued by Blake “TheCasualGamer” Bottrill in an article for Splyce.
Now that LoL franchising has gone from rumour to reality, all investor’s eyes will be on whether the LPL’s new system can successfully squash monetization issues, and drive domestic interest in competing teams.