A New Challenger Approaches: Riot’s Plan To Find New Talent

In order to be eligible prospective pros must be Master or Challenger tier players by the time a survey is sent out via email in late October, the dates are to be announced via @lolesports on Twitter and as well as the official League of Legends Esports Boards. The survey will outline the player’s interest in playing professionally as well as their preferred role and personal details which will be sent out to prospective teams.

The other prerequisites include:

• You must be 16 years of age by the start of the Challenger Series 2017 spring split.
• You have not played in more than two professional League of Legends matches in any league. [This includes Challenger Leagues.]
• You cannot be under contract by any professional team including Challenger teams at the time invites go out.
• You’re a North American resident as determined by the Interregional Movement Policy.
• You can pass a player behaviour check, similar to what Challenger and LCS players must pass. This check includes a review of in-game behaviour, Terms of Service violations and looks at previous bans or suspensions.

This announcement comes after many seasons of North America’s seasoned pros having been outspoken about the state of supposed high-level solo play. Players claim that the region has no incentive to ‘try hard’ in comparison to other regions such as Korea and China where teams are far more likely to replace weak players with pub stars.

While the reception to the announcement has been mixed overall, the program has drawn comparisons to the NFL’s Scouting Combine which is similar to the AFL’s Draft Combine, a showcase before drafting season where young footballers perform physical and mental tests in the presence of coaches, general managers and scouts.

There is no doubt that League of Legends spectators and teams alike will be keeping an eye on this event. This could a pivotal step forward into scouting fresh and committed talent to established organisations. Perhaps in the future, the OPL and other wildcard regions may adopt this system, or maybe be involved in the future. Only time will tell.