The LEC is the premier competition forLeague of Legendsin the new EMEA region which has expanded beyond Europe. Every year ten teams compete for the title, as well as the chance to attend MSI and Worlds, where the bestLeagueteams from around the globe can be found.
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With highly anticipated changes to the format, new teams joining the league, and a handful of new faces ready to make a name for themselves, the 2023 LEC season promises to be one of the most exciting yet.
5Format changes: More Series & Elimination
From now on the LEC season will be divided into three Splits; Winter, Spring, and Summer, all followed by the Season Finals where the LEC Champion will be crowned. Each Split will be made up of three distinct rounds with elimination present at all stages. The first round of each split will see all ten teams face off in best-of-one games, with the top eight teams advancing to the second round. Here the remaining teams will be split into two groups and play best-of-three games for the opportunity to advance. In the final round, the four best teams will compete in best-of-fives with the winner earning themselves a spot in the end-of-year Season Finals.
As a result of these well-received changes, fans will get to see more best-of series, especially between the top-performing teams; and with elimination between rounds,a season full of tense games can be expected.Teams will also have more motivation to start winning from the get-go, for if they fall short in round one then that is it for them in the current Split, after just nine games played. On the other hand, the teams that advance far will get to play way more games than previously possible in the LEC, which is great for the region’s international hopes. In addition to these format changes, the LEC will be switching its broadcast days to Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, with Friday also being used during the Split Playoffs.
4A New & Bigger EMEA Ecosystem
By expanding the European region to include the CIS, Turkey and the Middle East and Africa, the future of the new EMEA region is looking bright. With players from all of these regions being able to compete in the LEC as residents and no longer taking up import slots, many more options are open to teams and players alike.
The new regional leagues will also be able to compete in the newly named EMEA Masters, which is known for producingfuture stars of the LEC.With more competition, especially from the Turkish region which previously attended international events, fans can expect an even stronger class of talent to emerge on the LEC stage soon.
3New Teams
2023 will see the addition of two new teams to the LEC, first of all, with Team Heretics acquiring the spot of Misfits Gaming. Team Heretics are a Spanish organization and will be arriving in the league with an established fanbase. By bringing in the first-ever Japanese import with top laner Evi, and securing the services of the most successful European jungler of all time Jankos, Heretics certainly aren’t here to mess around.
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Meanwhile, reigning LEC champions Rogue have undergone a transformation this offseason by merging with the Spanish team and huge brand of KOI, which will be the name of the team from now on. By keeping the infrastructure and majority of the roster that has led to regular top finishes in recent years, KOI will be expected to carry on their impressively consistent form into 2023 and beyond. Meanwhile, the team can expect a surge of new support fromthe fan base of owner and streamer Ibai.
2Returning Players
Two of the biggest name bot laners are returning to the LEC in 2023, firstly with former Rogue star Hans sama returning to the league after an unsatisfactory year in NA. G2 fans will be hoping that their new signing can return to the form he showed when last in Europe, which he showcased best at Worlds 2021. He will also bereunited with his supportfrom the 2018 season Mikyx.
Making an even bigger splash is the return of Rekkles who was unable to find an LEC spot for the 2022 season, and so spent the year playing for Karmine Corp in the French league. Rekkles will be returning to his old team Fnatic, and both player and team will be hungry for a long-awaited title in 2023.
1Team Vitality’s Bo
By itself, the highly anticipated debut season of prodigy jungler Bo is enough to have fans tuning into the LEC each week. After arriving in June 2022 from China where he is, unfortunately, unable to play, Bo has had plenty of time to settle into his new life with Team Vitality. In the process, he has learned a good amount of English and put fear in the hearts of Europeansolo queue players with his aggressive play style.
If Bo is able to live up to his expectations and synergize with his team, there is a chance fans will see a level of play never seen before in the LEC. Anyone who has tuned into his stream will also have seen that the league will be graced with a fantastic new personality, who will doubtless provide plenty of laughs during interviews and voice comm highlights.
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