Riot Games Discusses League of Legends Esports

There is no denying that the esports industry, as a whole, has experienced it’s fair share of struggles financially and those struggled have also hit Riot Games’ League of Legends esports division, which still has not generated a profit.

Riot Games’ senior director of esports operations Raul Fernandez spoke about those challenges during the League Championship Series Summer finals last weekend stating that Riot Games were “trying to find their footing” and “a way to refresh our league” in light of declining viewership numbers, according to Axios.

“It’s been an interesting year for esports across the globe, but despite the hardships at Riot, we’re very much excited for the future and potential of esports, especially for the LCS,” Fernandez said, per Dot Esports.

“I just wanted to make it very loud and clear that the LCS is in a very healthy position financially because of this sustained and continued support from both external partners, the team side, from sponsors, as well as internally.”

The rise of live-streaming and an esports streaming platform hasn’t turned the tide as the LCS Summer finals saw a 21.8% drop in peak viewership compared to the LCS Spring finals, according to Esports Charts.

The troubling trends have been a focus for esports journalists covering the industry and Fernandez said one of the biggest challenges is the “complexity” of League of Legends. The report goes on to note that continuous updates and an expanded roster of characters “has made it hard for Riot games to sell in-game items themed to top players or teams” pointing to the choice for fans of the competition.