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Sport | League of Legends |
---|---|
Founded | 2018 |
Organising body | Riot Games |
No. of teams | 28 from 13 leagues |
Region | EMEA |
Most recent champion(s) | Team BDS Academy (2024 Summer) |
Most titles | Karmine Corp (4 titles) |
EMEA Masters (formerly known as the European Masters) is a League of Legends tournament organized twice a year by Riot Games. The tournament is the conclusion of each split of the EMEA Regional Leagues. The EMEA Masters is the most important tournament in EMEA for teams outside the League of Legends EMEA Championship franchise.
Up to and including 2018, the two top leagues in Europe were the European League of Legends Championship Series (EU LCS) and European Challenger Series (EU CS). To get into the EU LCS, one had to first get into EU CS through qualification. You could get into the qualifiers through a previous open qualification or by winning one of the national leagues. [1] Once you got into EU CS, you had to take one of the first two or three (depending on the season) spots in the play-offs. After taking the right spot in the EU CS play-offs, the team would qualify for the Promotion Tournament, where it would face one of the weakest teams from the previous EU LCS season for a spot in the elite.
After pressure from some organizations, Riot Games has decided to switch the EU LCS to a franchise model, as well as rebranding the league into the League of Legends European Championship (LEC) from early 2019. [2] With the transition to a franchise model from 2019, the possibility of promotion to the LEC ceased to exist, making Challenger Series an unnecessary competition. Nonetheless, there were regional leagues across Europe, which until now offered the chance to climb the European league hierarchy. With most European organizations left without an international competition (only 10 teams joined the newly formed franchise), it was decided to create a new Champions League-style competition. The competition was called the European Masters (EU Masters), and the best teams from all European Regional Leagues (ERL) would play in it. [3]
In late 2022, Riot Games announced the expansion of the European region to include the Middle East and North Africa. The League of Legends European Championship franchise was renamed League of Legends EMEA Championship, and the European Masters was renamed EMEA Masters. With the expansion of the region, the Arabian League and Turkish Championship League were added to the EMEA Masters ecosystem. [4] The format of the tournament itself has not changed.
League | Seeding in EMEA Masters | |
---|---|---|
Seeds in Group Stage | Seeds in Play In Stage | |
La Ligue Francaise | 2 | 1 |
Şampiyonluk Ligi | 2 | 1 |
Superliga LVP | 2 | 0 |
Prime League | 2 | 0 |
Ultraliga | 2 | 0 |
Northern LoL Championship | 1 | 1 |
PG Nationals | 1 | 1 |
Esports Balkan League | 0 | 2 |
Liga Portuguesa de LoL | 0 | 2 |
Greek Legends League | 0 | 2 |
Elite Series | 0 | 2 |
HitPoint Masters | 0 | 2 |
Arabian League | 0 | 2 |
Team Curse, also known as Curse eSports, was a North American esports organization sponsored by Curse, Inc. and based in Los Angeles. Formed as a League of Legends team in 2010 by Steve "LiQuiD112" Arhancet, it was acquired by Curse Inc. in August 2011, and the team renamed to Team Curse. On April 15, 2014, Arhancet announced that he had purchased the esports arm of the Curse Inc., which from then on was an organization entire separated from Curse, Inc., although they were still the title sponsor of the new Curse eSports brand.
The League Championship Series (LCS) was the top level of professional League of Legends in the United States and Canada. The esports league was run by Riot Games and had anywhere from eight to 10 teams. Each annual season of competition was divided into two splits, spring and summer, which concluded with a double-elimination tournament between the top teams. At the end of the season, the winner, runners-up and third-place team of the summer playoffs qualified for the annual League of Legends World Championship.
Enrique Cedeño Martinez, better known by his in-game name xPeke, is a retired professional League of Legends player. He was the founder and owner of Origen, which competed in the LEC, the top level of professional League of Legends in Europe. Martinez is best known for his spell with Fnatic, with whom he has won three League of Legends Championship Series Europe titles and the Season 1 World Championship.
Origen was a professional esports organisation based in Europe. Its main League of Legends team participated in the League of Legends European Championship (LEC), the top-level league for the game in Europe. It was founded by Enrique "xPeke" Cedeño Martínez after his departure from Fnatic.
The League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) is the professional League of Legends esports league run by Riot Games in the EMEA region, in which ten teams compete. Each annual season of play is divided into three splits, winter, spring and summer, all consisting of three weeks of round-robin tournament play, which then conclude with play-off tournaments between the top six teams. At the end of the season, the top performing teams qualify for the annual League of Legends World Championship. The LEC represents the highest level of League of Legends play in the EMEA.
G2 Esports is a European esports organization headquartered in Berlin, Germany, with players competing in League of Legends, Valorant, Counter-Strike 2, Hearthstone, Rocket League, Rainbow Six Siege, Fortnite, and iRacing. The organization was founded in Spain on 24 February 2014 as Gamers2 by former League of Legends pro Carlos "ocelote" Rodríguez Santiago and investor Jens Hilgers. The organization rebranded as G2 Esports on 15 October 2015.
Splyce (SPY) was a professional esports organization and media company based in Rochester, New York. Their League of Legends team was a franchise member of the LEC, Europe's top professional league for League of Legends. Splyce announced its rebranding from Follow eSports in November 2015. On November 29, 2019, Splyce's parent company, OverActive Media, announced it had merged Splyce with its other esports subsidiary, MAD Lions, and that all of Splyce's teams would henceforth compete under that name.
The Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) is an annual League of Legends international tournament hosted by Riot Games in the middle of years, since 2015. It is the second most important international League of Legends tournament aside from the World Championship.
Carl Martin Erik Larsson, better known as Rekkles, is a Swedish professional League of Legends player for Los Ratones, a semi-professional team owned and coached by British League content creator Caedrel. He has played for Fnatic, Alliance, G2 Esports, Karmine Corp and T1 Esports Academy.
Schalke 04 Esports is the esports department of football club FC Schalke 04. It has a FIFA division and a League of Legends division; the latter is a member of the Prime League, the European Regional League for League of Legends teams competing in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.
The League of Legends Challenger Series (CS) were two professional League of Legends leagues, one in Europe and one in North America, that were the second highest level of professional League of Legends in those regions. The two highest-placing teams from the Challenger Series played in the League of Legends Promotion Tournament against the two lowest-placing League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) teams, the winners of which were promoted to the Championship Series in each region, whereas the losers were relegated to the Challenger Series. The league was announced in December 2013 and began play for the Spring 2014 season. Both the NA and EU CS were discontinued in 2018 in preparation for league franchising.
Maurice Stückenschneider, better known by his in-game name Amazing, is a German professional League of Legends player and coach. He is currently a coach for Misfits Gaming of the League of Legends European Championship (LEC). Amazing was a semifinalist at the 2015 World Championship while on Origen. Stückenschneider has been called "one of the most successful German League of Legends players of all time."
Martin Nordahl Hansen, better known as Wunder, is a Danish professional League of Legends player. He began playing in the League of Legends European Championship (LEC) with Splyce in 2016. After two seasons with the team, he signed with G2 Esports. In his four years with the team, he won four consecutive LEC titles, was a five-time LEC All-Pro, won the 2019 Mid-Season Invitational, and was a finalist at the 2019 League of Legends World Championship. He was transferred to Fnatic prior to the start of the 2022 LEC season.
Misfits Gaming is a professional esports organization based in Boca Raton, Florida, with players competing in League of Legends, Overwatch, Call of Duty, Fortnite, and Roblox. It was founded on 18 May 2016 by Ben Spoont, initially launching as a League of Legends Challenger Series team. It is also partnered by creating a Youtube channel and a Roblox gaming studio called Pixel Playground created by Karl Jacobs and popular Roblox YouTuber KreekCraft on the 24 March 2023.
League of Legends esports is the professional competition of the multiplayer online battle arena video game League of Legends. It is developed and published by Riot Games and was first released in 2009.
The 2018 European League of Legends Championship Series was the sixth season of the European League of Legends Championship Series, the highest level of professional League of Legends play in Europe. Most games were being played at Studio K/L in Adlershof, Berlin, Germany.
Steven Liv, better known as Hans Sama, is a French professional League of Legends player for G2 Esports. Liv has previously played for Team Liquid in the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS), as well as Rogue and Misfits in the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC).
Marc Robert Lamont, better known as Caedrel, is a British professional League of Legends coach, currently head coach for Los Ratones. He is also a content creator, streamer, retired professional League of Legends player and sports commentator for Riot Games. Known for holding co-streams of major professional League of Legends regions and international competitions, Lamont is considered as one of the biggest streamers within the game's community, mostly known for his in-depth gameplay analysis and familiarity.
The League of Legends Championship of the Americas (LTA), also known as the League of The Americas, is the upcoming top level of professional League of Legends in the Americas, which includes the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean. The esports league is run by Riot Games and has sixteen teams split into two conferences, North and South. Each annual season of competition is divided into three splits, with playoff competition between the top teams. At the end of each split, the best teams qualify for the three international tournaments – The winner of the first split qualifies for the First Stand Tournament, the winners of each conference in the second split qualify for the Mid Season Invitational, and the top three teams in the third split playoffs qualify for the annual League of Legends World Championship.