After 2 weeks, LCS Monday Night League is a viewership flop

Olivia Richman Published 05/02/2020

The League of Legends Championship Series’ Monday Night League concept appears to be a flop. 

The LCS introduced a new schedule for the 2020 LCS Spring Split, with each week of the LCS now taking place across Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Adding that extra day was meant to attract new audiences, but it seems to be having the opposite effect.

Despite featuring some pretty big matches, including Team Liquid vs. Team SoloMid in week one and FlyQuest vs. Dignitas in week two, Monday Night League only saw a viewership peak of 73,000. 

According to Twitch Tracker, the average viewer count was 45,570 over the 2.8 hour stream for the most recent installment. Last week’s Monday Night League premiere had a little over 106,000. 

LCS Monday Night League has a disappointing viewer count

While the low viewership is obviously upsetting, nobody can say it’s a surprise. When it comes to North American viewers, watching a game that late on a weekday can be an inconvenience. Even if it’s an exceptionally good matchup, some people don’t have the motivation to watch League of Legends after work, or have other obligations in their life. 

LCS commissioner Chris Greeley told the Washington Post that Monday Night League was made especially with these NA viewers in mind. 

“The overwhelming feeling was, let’s carve out a space where nobody else is. We can start to create some habits right alongside our fans. Get home from work, get home from school and have something to tune into on Monday nights instead of the void we have now,” he said. 

Unfortunately, it seems like watching League of Legends isn’t on people’s minds late Monday night. 

When it comes to other regions, the evening slot is not an easy commitment. Fans in Europe would have to stay up to 2:30 a.m. to see the beginning of the first match. For Korean fans, that would be 10:30 a.m. the following day, when most people are at work or school. In other words, Monday Night League loses a lot of international viewers. 

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

View full profile

Read Also

League of Legends

Caps Hall of Legends skins prices and dates revealed Hannan Mundia Caps is the latest League of Legends player to be inducted into the Hall of Legends, and the LEC player’s dedicated skins have been revealed, including their prices and release dates. The Hall of Legends is Riot Games’ way to honor a handful of the most well-known and celebrated professional players associated with LoL. The first inductee was naturally Faker, while the second was Uzi. The third player is Caps, ...

League of Legends

Five Support Champions To Pick Up in LoL Patch 26.17 Ben Boland The support meta in League of Legends is one of the most highly discussed roles in the game right now. With Riot doubling down on the roaming support playstyle, we will likely see more champions added to the pool around the time of Worlds 2026, which begins on 15 October. At the time of writing this article, the current patch, 26.17, is being tested on the PBE, with the launch ...

League of Legends

These Are Five Top Lane Champions To Pick Up in League of Legends Patch 26.17 Ben Boland League of Legends patch 26.17 is just around the corner, and with that patch comes more changes to the role. The days of ADCs in the lane are starting to be a thing of the past, with more bruisers hitting the gym before the launch of 26.17. Many top laners are receiving buffs on the new patch, while powerhouses such as Nasus and Vayne are on the chopping block, making ...

League of Legends

Here Is What To Expect From the League of Legends Patch 26.17 Ben Boland It’s less than a week until the release of League of Legends Patch 26.17, and with this patch comes some significant nerfs to popular champions, item adjustments, and targeting roaming supports as mage bottom lanes dominate the meta. While there is plenty to unpack in this week's patch from Riot Games, two champions, Vayne and Xerath, have received the biggest nerfs across the board. Here are some of the biggest ...

League of Legends

Trade on LGD vs Bilibili Gaming at Polymarket — Use Promo Code WINGGPREMAR Ben Boland Bilibili Gaming comes into their best-of-three series against LGD Gaming as the overwhelming favorites, with Polymarket traders giving the MSI finalists an 83% implied probability of winning at the time of writing this article. The prediction market doesn’t give LGD much of a chance at all, and with traders backing BLG heavily, it paints a picture of who is most likely to win this series in the LPL Split 3, ...

League of Legends

Which Teams Should Be Panicking Ahead of LoL Worlds 2026? Ben Boland The 2026 League of Legends World Championship is fast approaching, with the tournament beginning on 15 October. 19 of the best teams that esports has to offer will do battle in North America for a shot at the Summoner's Cup. For teams like Bilibili Gaming and Hanwha Life Esports, their fates are already sealed without stepping foot on the Rift again, but for the rest of the teams, they will ...

League of Legends

Predictions For Gen.G vs Dplus KIA: Best Value Odds at GGBET Ben Boland Two of the more in-form teams in the LCK go head-to-head as Dplus KIA takes on Gen.G on 22 August. Despite the odds leaning more towards a Gen.G win, there are some solid bets to make across the board, not just simply the result. Dplus KIA have shown impressive form throughout the summer and so shouldn’t be discounted in this series. In this preview, we will highlight the best chances to ...