League of Legends
League of Legends
FunPlus Phoenix share picks for 2019 World Champion skins
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
As the winner of the League of Legends 2019 World Championship, FunPlus Phoenix picked champions that will receive the new World Champion skins. Beyond the trophy and a cash prize, winners of League’s Worlds championships get their own set of in-game skins. Players get to choose champions they wish the skins to be designed for, under the condition they played that champion during the main event. Often the champions picked …
League of Legends
Zikz joins 100 Thieves as head coach while Amazing leaves
William Davis
Former Team SoloMid coach Tony “Zikz” Gray has joined 100 Thieves, and the team announced the signing through Twitter. 100 Thieves is making moves ahead of the 2020 Spring Split, with the team announcing Zikz as the head coach for its LCS team. Zikz is joining 100 Thieves after an underwhelming year with TSM. Hiring Zikz is the first deal closed by the newly appointed general manager and former broadcaster …
League of Legends
Huni reported to sign $2.3 million contract with Dignitas
William Davis
Dignitas wants to keep top laner Heo “Huni” Seung-hoon for two more years, and according to ESPN the organization offered him a contract for $2.3 million guaranteed. Dignitas is not afraid to spend money on its roster, and if the contract goes through, Huni will become one of the best paid players in the LCS and possibly the world. Huni was transferred from Echo Fox to Clutch Gaming in 2019, …
League of Legends
Worlds 2019 finals breaks Twitch viewing record, beats Fortnite
Olivia Richman
Although some viewers around the world might have needed some extra coffee to wake up or stay up and watch the World Championship over the weekend, the last weekend of Worlds still managed to break Twitch’s record for all-time peak concurrent viewers. The finals had 1.7 million viewers on Twitch alone, which beat the previous record by 100,000. With this, League of Legends has surpassed Dota 2 and Fortnite as …
League of Legends
Legends of Runeterra progression, loot system revealed by Riot
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Riot Games is ready to jump into the digital card game genre with Legends of Runeterra. Some players already got a chance to play the beta test and the developer has recently offered clear details on the in-game progression system. As with any other trading card game, collecting cards to play with is a major part of LoR. Cards can be obtained via quests, capsules, chests, vaults, and other rewards. …
League of Legends
True Damage Little Legends arrive in Teamfight Tactics
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Little Legends series five has arrived in League of Legends. Teamfight Tactics’ three new little legends are based on the recently debuted virtual band True Damage. The new additions are named Ossia, QiQi and Melisma, and they resemble the True Damage versions of Akali, Qiyana, and Senna, respectively. Riot Games announced the upcoming little legends series through a video trailer that is a cuter, clumsier version of the one released …
News
LoL Worlds 2020 finals headed to Shanghai Stadium
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
The finals to next year’s League of Legends World Championship will be played in China. After a quick LoL Worlds 2019 final, which saw FunPlus Phoenix sweep G2 Esports in dominating fashion, Riot Games is already installing the framework for next year’s championship. Following the series, the Worlds hosts announced that the 2020 Worlds finals will be headed to Shanghai. Worlds is headed back to China for the tenth edition …
League of Legends
FunPlus Phoenix’s Tian wins LoL World Championship MVP
William Davis
FunPlus Phoenix jungler Gao “Tian” Tian-Liang is the 2019 League of Legends World Championship finals MVP. Throughout the series, Tian was the superior jungler to Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski. Tian established this early in game one with an invasion that started FunPlus Phoenix’s snowball towards victory. That became a trend throughout the series, as Tian continued to get his team ahead and set his team up for success around the map. The …
True Damage debuts during LoL Worlds opening ceremony
Steven Rondina
League of Legends
The 2019 League of Legends World Championship finals kicked off in memorable fashion. The live event began with an extended musical performance that included Cailin Russo and Chrissy Costanza performing the World 2019 theme Phoenix, as well as Awaken singer Valerie Broussard. Most notably, League’s new virtual band, True Damage, made its official debut with a rendition of debut single Giants. The song featured a mix of hip hop and …
FunPlus Phoenix trounce G2 Esports, win LoL Worlds 2019 finals
William Davis
League of Legends
LPL representative FunPlus Phoenix is the 2019 World Champion. FunPlus took down G2 Esports with a clean 3-0 victory in the 2019 League of Legends World Championship finals to keep the Summoner’s Cup in China for another year. The LPL has now won back-to-back World Championships and solidified itself as the strongest region in the world. Heading into the finals, FunPlus was considered the underdog. The team had a shaky …
G2 Esports and FunPlus Phoenix prepare for final at Worlds 2019
William Davis
League of Legends
The 2019 League of Legends World Championship is coming to an end, as on November 10 G2 Esports and FunPlus Phoenix will play the final series of the tournament. After over a month of frenetic action, the biggest international event of the year in League of Legends is finally coming to an end. Just like last year in 2018, the final will have one European team and one Chinese team …
G2 Esports is three games from making history at Worlds 2019
William Davis
League of Legends
For the longest time, Europe has been the region that is “almost there”. Multiple European teams have now gotten close to a title victory only to come up short. There are two names that stand out here, the two European powerhouses that are always in contention: Fnatic and G2 Esports. In 2018, Fnatic was the best team in the region. The squad had a decent showing at the Mid-Season Invitational …
Svenskeren and Zeyzal to transfer to Evil Geniuses for LCS 2020
William Davis
League of Legends
According to a report by ESPN’s Jacob Wolf, Evil Geniuses and Cloud9 have reached an agreement that will see jungler Dennis “Svenskeren” Johnsen and support Tristan “Zeyzal” Stidam transferred to the new franchise. The move won’t be official until November 18 when the free agency period officially opens. After a disappointing end to its run at the 2019 League of Legends World Championship, Cloud9 is ready to make changes. The …
LoL Worlds 2019 finals betting to be allowed in New Jersey
gabhernandez
League of Legends
New Jersey has been given a one-time permit by the Division of Gaming Enforcement to allow bets to be placed on the 2019 League of Legends World Championship finals. It is still unclear exactly which venues, apps, and websites will have the ability to accept wagers on the event. As of this writing, only the Borgata is officially covering the match. Online sports betting is legal in New Jersey, with …
FunPlus Phoenix, the unlikely heroes of the LPL at Worlds 2019
William Davis
League of Legends
The LPL is a mystery for many western viewers. For the casual League of Legends enthusiast, China might as well be on another planet. They know LPL teams tend to fight aggressively and that Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao is one of the best carry players in the world. Other aspects of the region, like its massive fan following and the players’ individual narratives, remain largely unknown. Even on the international stage, …
Twisted Treeline gone from League of Legends, rewards announced
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
League of Legends
Ten years after its public release, Twisted Treeline is finally retiring from League of Legends. The 3v3 map will be available until the end of this season when it will be completely removed. It’s not news for League fans that Twisted Treeline will be getting removed, but now the date is set. Riot Games announced the game mode was getting pulled from the rotation so they can focus on larger …
World champion top laner Duke parts ways with Invictus Gaming
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
League of Legends
Korean League of Legends player Lee “Duke” Ho-seong has parted ways with Invictus Gaming after having spent the last three years playing for the Chinese team. After taking third place at the 2019 League of Legends World Championship, iG’s top laner Duke decided to leave the team. Even though their run at Worlds this year wasn’t as great as last year’s when iG took the world championship title, the squad …
Ranking the top esports musical performances ever in esports
Steven Rondina
League of Legends
Esports and music can go hand in hand in a pretty profound way. Sound design is an important part of video games in general, but the live event nature of esports sees musical acts regularly incorporated into the festivities. Video game publishers steer into this, often with impressive results. Over the last several years there have been many unique and entertaining connections between esports and music. Whether it’s live performances …
These are the 10 teams competing in the LCS in 2020
Olivia Richman
League of Legends
The League of Legends Championship Series has announced the North American teams who will be competing in 2020. Celebrating Team Liquid, Cloud9, and Clutch Gaming’s 2019 World Championship qualification, the LCS official Twitter account also shared the 10 teams who will be fighting for those coveted spots next year. While many fan favorites are returning to prove themselves in 2020, there’s also some new rosters hoping to make a name …
How Perkz giving his lane to Caps took G2 to 2019 Worlds finals
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
League of Legends
Just a few days are left until G2 Esports meets with Fun Plus Phoenix on the 2019 League of Legends Worlds final stage in Paris. This likely wouldn’t be possible for G2 if Luka “Perkz” Perković hadn’t stepped down from his position as mid laner and offered it to Ramus “Caps” Winther. G2 is the best European League of Legends team, but it hasn’t always been that way. Although consistently near …
League of Legends
is among the most popular widely-played video games in the world. It has been a consistent trendsetter in the gaming industry, whether as a model for other free-to-play titles looking to monetize their players or as a guiding light for how professional esports can be both successful and sustainable.
It hasn’t always been so though. League of Legends was released in 2009 as an uncertain new project, a game with large aspirations but little proven. In the years since, it has developed into the dominant title that it is today, and one of the biggest games on the planet.
League of Legends drives success of MOBA genre
League of Legends stands out in part because it may arguably be the very first original game released to truly fit into what we now understand to be the increasingly
popular MOBA genre. Multiplayer Online Battle Arenas are a very particular type of game genre that carry out competition between two opposing teams of players on a map. These games test a mix of competition, tactics, and quick reactions, a potent combination that has proven equal parts popular and durable over the years.
While League of Legends was certainly among the first full releases to focus on the genre and its new ideas, it wasn’t actually the origin point for any of it. That distinction belongs to
Blizzard release WarCraft 3,
and more specifically a modified game mode titled
Defense of the Ancients.
WarCraft 3 was a real-time strategy game that featured prominent hero units who could gain in power as they accrued experience points to level up their abilities, and gold to purchase powerful items. Defense of the Ancients was a
user-made game mode
which emphasized these heroes by giving each player control over one such character and teaming them up against an opposing squad of players. It was a dynamite success, inspiring myriad clones and, eventually, an entire genre of games.
But while League of Legends wasn’t the first to bring about these concepts, it was certainly
effective in executing on them. Early developers at publisher Riot Games had a clear idea of what they wanted to accomplish with the creation of League of Legends, and it would be hard to argue against their success given the runaway popularity achieved by their iteration on the MOBA formula.
LoL incorporates esports sustainably
Just as impressive as the long-term success of League of Legends as a game is the continued success of the title’s esports scene. While esports has known multiple peaks and valleys over the years, Riot Games has consistently managed to maintain the prominence of LoL esports. This has been accomplished through an emphasis on
regular regional play
and
sustainability.
Most esports and competitive games at the time used a circuits system, scattering major tournaments for the best teams across the year. Instead, Riot divided the world into separate playing regions. Each region has its own
competitive league
in which the best professional teams play weekly. The best teams in each league are then brought together for an
annual World Championship event
at the end of the competitive year. This allowed for domestic fan followings to develop across such regions as
Korea,
China,
Europe, and
North
and
South America. Fans would closely follow the teams in their region, and from that familiarity would feel invested in cheering them on when they clashed with teams from other regions at the game’s biggest international event.
This basic blueprint has continued to prove successful for Riot Games over the years, though it has expanded and been modified with time. In response to the success of the World Championship, Riot introduced a second international tournament in 2015, the prestigious
Mid-Season Invitational. In 2025,
First Stand
was added to bring LoL esports to three international events per year. Once again the scene was enhanced and this indirectly expanded the opportunities for
League of Legends esports betting. In the meantime, the regional leagues have spread out to include
more regions and lower levels, solidifying their identity.
The basic formula remains the same, however.
Encourage fan support on a domestic level, and then carry that support and interest over to
the global stage. It’s a formula that continues to power League of Legends esports, and looks set to enable it for many years yet to come.
At Win.gg, our coverage of LoL esports spans from the broader competitive updates and their impact on the scene to in-depth high-profile match previews with team analysis, head-to-head analysis,
LoL betting odds
sense-makers and predictions. All of these based on the insights of our experienced esports journalists.
