League of Legends EMEA Championship

League of Legends EMEA Championship
Most recent season or competition:
2024 LEC season
FormerlyEuropean League of Legends Championship Series (2013–2018)
League of Legends European Championship (2019–2022)
GameLeague of Legends
Founded2013
Owner(s)Riot Games
CommissionerArtem Bykov
Motto"We Are EU"
No. of teams10
HeadquartersAdlershof, Berlin, Germany
ContinentEurope (2013–2022)
Europe, Middle East and Africa (since 2023)
Most recent
champion(s)		G2 Esports (16th title)
(Season Finals 2024)
Most titlesG2 Esports (16 titles)
International cup(s)First Stand
Mid-Season Invitational
World Championship
Related
competitions		LCS, LCK, LPL
Official websitelolesports.com

The League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) is the professional League of Legends esports league run by Riot Games in the EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) region, in which ten teams compete. Each annual season of play is divided into three splits, winter, spring and summer, all consisting of three weeks of round-robin tournament play, which then conclude with play-off tournaments between the top six teams. At the end of the season, the top performing teams qualify for the annual League of Legends World Championship. The LEC represents the highest level of League of Legends play in the EMEA.

With the exception of some touring events, all games of the LEC are played live at the Riot Games Arena in Adlershof, Berlin, Germany.[1] In addition to a small studio audience, all games are streamed live in several languages on Twitch and YouTube, with broadcasts regularly attracting over 300,000 viewers.[2]

The popularity and success of the LEC has attracted significant media attention. On 30 September 2016, the French Senate unanimously adopted the last version of the Law for a Digital Republic [fr], significantly improving the visa process for LEC players and esports athletes in general, giving a legal framework to esports contracts, introducing mechanisms to ensure payment of cash prizes, specifying rights for minor esport athletes, and more.[3] A few months before, France also introduced a new esports federation, "France Esports", which has the duty to be a representative body of esports towards the government and serve as a "partner of the French National Olympic and Sports Committee for all matters relating to the recognition of electronic sports as sport in itself".[4] Spain did the same in November 2016, creating the Spanish Federation of Video Games and Esports Spanish Federation of Video Games and Esports.[5][6] The LEC has attracted sponsorships from LG UltraGear, Kia,[7] Red Bull,[8] and Erste Group.[9]

Fnatic is the only team remaining that has played in every split since the inaugural 2013 Spring Split.

The LEC announced a controversial sponsorship deal with Neom in 2020. Many of the league's staff threatened a walkout,[10] which led to the sponsorship being cancelled.

  1. ^ "Riot Games Esports Media Center - "Riot Games reveals plans for new home of EMEA esports in Berlin"". esports.riotgamesmedia.com. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
  2. ^ Kwilinski, Darin. "LCS retains viewers during the Super Bowl". onGamers. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 9 August 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  3. ^ Auxent, Adrien (30 September 2016). "Esports are now officially legal in France". The Esports Observer. Retrieved 18 June 2017.
  4. ^ Auxent, Adrien (28 April 2016). "All you need to know about France's new esports federation, "France eSports"". The Esports Observer. Retrieved 18 June 2017.
  5. ^ "Spain government creates a federation of video games and esports". The Esports Observer. 8 November 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  6. ^ Ring, Oliver (10 November 2016). "Spanish Federation of Video Games and Esports set to be created". Esports Insider. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  7. ^ "Kia enters e-sports arena as League of Legends European Championship sponsor" (Press release).
  8. ^ "Red Bull sponsors League of Legends European Championship". ONE Esports.
  9. ^ "Erste Bank Group Joins as a Summer Finals Main Partner of the LEC". 17 July 2020.
  10. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (29 July 2020). "Riot Games ends Saudi Arabia's Neom partnership following controversy". Polygon. Retrieved 18 October 2020.