Contents
League of Legends’ Season 11 will be bringing an incredible amount of changes to the North American LCS in 2021 and look to bring in a new “lock-in” format.
In a recent announcement on their official website, Riot Games have decided to add a new three-week tournament before the start of the Spring Split. The tournament will take place from the 15th to the 31st of January and will be termed as the “NA LCS Lock-In.”
The lock-in phase for the North American LCS will have a group stage format, where the top two teams from the previous season will get a chance to draft their own group opponents.
The top four teams will be able to move onto the elimination bracket, and the winner of the entire lock-in tournament will be rewarded with a $150,000 prize money and an additional $50,000 to a charity of their choice.
LCS Splits get a new makeover
The LCS Spring Split for 2021 will be starting on the 5th of February and will be ending on the 14th of March. There will be three match days every week, each boasting five games.
The Spring Split playoffs will also be replaced by the Mid-Season Showdown, and the top six teams will be able to duke it out, with the winner being crowned the Spring Split champion.
The LCS Spring champion will also get to participate in the Mid-Season Invitational and compete against other top teams in different leagues.
The Summer Split for the LCS will be held from the 4th of June to the 1st of August. The teams will be facing off in a triple round-robin, with the regular season-ending with playoffs matches, where teams will be seeded based on their Spring Split and Summer Split records.
As one of the four major regions, the LCS has had a very poor showing in the last few League of Legends’ World Championship tournaments, and this new system will look to shake up the pre-existing competitive scene.
The makeover will aim to harvest more young and local talent for the region and help develop a scene that has remained stagnant for so long.
The North American teams will now have to focus on the performance of their entire split and not just on the second half.
Published 15 Dec 2020, 12:20 IST
