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Riot Games issued a statement that two of its biggest Esports events are scheduled to take place back-to-back this May in Reykjavík, Iceland. In addition, as Riot Games continues to expand its Esports footprint, the company has expanded its partnership with Verizon as the formal 5G partner, encouraging both LoL Esports Global Events and VALORANT Esports.
The League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational (MSI), which was called off last year due to the Impact of COVID-19, will kick start the competition between the top 12 teams from the regional leagues on Thursday, May 6 and lead up to with the final on Sunday, May 23.
The VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) Masters Reykjavík, starting the next day on Monday, May 24, will be the first VALORANT Esports event to feature live international competition, put together the powerful 10 teams from around the world to contend for a spot at VALORANT Champions later this year. VCT Masters Reykjavík will end with a final game to take place on May 30th.
Contention for both events will take place in the Laugardalshöll indoor sporting arena as Riot put together the best-in-class Esports competition from two titles to Iceland for the first time.
Also to MSI and Masters 2, Verizon’s long time agreement as the formal 5G Partner also extends to the huge global events of the LoL Esports and VALORANT competition schedule. This includes the League of Legends World Championship (“Worlds”), which find its return to North America in 2022; LoL Esports All-Star Event; three VALORANT Champions Tour Masters events; and VALORANT Champions. The agreement also includes the VALORANT North America Challengers.
Verizon also is a major partner in VALORANT’s recently disclosed VCT Game Changers, a program that will play host monthly competitions to give female players more chance to compete at the semi-pro and grassroots level.
This cooperation just serves as the latest emphasis of Verizon’s consistent support of Riot’s Esports enterprise. Since 2020, Verizon has been the Official 5G Partner for the League Championship series (LCS), providing aid for LCS through original video content and in-broadcast sponsored segments. Their support offered to VALORANT First Strike: North America, the first official competition for Riot’s premier tactical shooter, as well as The Wild Rift Invitational – the world’s first Wild Rift Esports event featuring LCS players and celebrities combined.
The Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) is a crucial battleground in the yearly LoL Esports season, where upcoming stars and teams make for themselves an international name. Held between the first and second splits of the season, the finest teams from each of the 12 regional leagues go head to head for the title. This year, a new style will open with three stages, starting with Groups, in where all 12 teams split into three groups of four teams each, each playing a Best of 1 double round robin. The top two teams per group will advance to the next stage, where the six remaining teams will play another Best of 1 double round robin. The top four teams will advance to a playoff bracket, and play in a Single Elimination, Best of 5 Semifinal accompanied by Finals.
“VCT Masters Reykjavik is our next huge step in further establishing VALORANT as the rapid-growing global esport,” said Whalen Rozelle, Riot Games’ Senior Director of Esports. “We have some of the most passionate fans around the world, and we’re dedicated to giving them a live event so that they can see how their favorite teams stack up internationally for the first time ever.”
Teams from both sports will quarantine upon arrival in Iceland. For the health and safety of the players, staff, and local residents, the events will be unable to accommodate a live audience, however all MSI and VCT Masters Stage 2 matches will be broadcast live globally across various digital platforms.