Physical Address

304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124

LCS Players Walkout Ends 

The LCSPA and Riot negotiations have finally ended and the start of the LCS is in sight. We break down what happened and the agreement.

It’s been a tense couple of weeks for the North American Competitive League of Legends scene as questions were swirling around the community around whether or not the players of the LCS Players Association would return to play for the 2023 LCS Summer Split. On June 8th at 9 PM Eastern, the LCS Players Association released a statement via their Twitter announcing that a deal had been reached and that players are ready to return to play and start the Summer Split on June 14th. 

The Timeline of Events

As we covered earlier, the LCS Players Association (LCSPA) walked out a little over a week ago. This all started after Riot Games made the decision to remove the requirement for the LCS teams to field both an LCS team and a North American Challengers League team (NACL). This came after the LCS teams asked Riot to lift the requirement stating high operation costs as the reasoning. 

Riot’s decision came to the shock of the LCSPA, which was under the impression that any changes to the NACL would come at the end of the 2023 competitive season. In response to the decision, the LCSPA voted a large majority to walk out. With a scheduled start date of June 1st, the LCS teams were pressured by Riot to field teams ready to compete. With a majority of top competitive talent supporting the walk-out, teams were having problems finding rosters to the field, causing Riot to delay the start of the LCS season. 

Negotiated Agreed Terms

Both the LCSPA and Riot Games released statements on the agreed-upon terms. The LCSPA included their tweet with the terms stated as:

  • “$300,000 for the remainder of the 2023 season to be split amongst the 10 NACL teams in order to boost player opportunity and pay”
  • “50% of all future NACL sponsorship revenue will now be shared by NACL Teams.”
  • “The NACL will have a Team Participation Agreement (TPA) in 2024. This means the NACL teams will have to abide by minimum standards in order to receive payments or revenue share from Riot.”
  • “A minimum of 30 days’ severance pay for termination without cause for any player earning up to 1.5 times the league minimum salary and 15 days’ notice for any player competing on a visa.”
  • “Players and teams will share equal representation on a committee to determine any future changes to the practice schedule in a collaborative manner.”
  • “Teams will take action to ensure all foreign players have mandated healthcare available to them by the first day they are in the US.”
  • “Riot and the LCSPA will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that establishes meetings and notice parameters to ensure all parties are aligned before any future decisions are locked and communications are made.”

Returning to Play

With a deal having been reached between the two parties North American League of Legends fans can once again turn their attention to the 2023 Summer Split as teams prepare for the first games, which will be played on June 14th. This will be the first season of the LCS that didn’t include a roster under the Counter Logic Gaming or CLG banner. The long-time staple of the North American competitive scene sold their spot to NRG, who will make their return to the LCS this split. Games are finally about to get underway! You won’t want to miss any of the action when the LCS returns to YouTube and Twitch on June 14th.