Could this finally be the end of best-of-one regular seasons?
The LCS format may be changing in the 2024 season. According to Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles, the LCS is going to change its format to align with the current LEC format. The former League of Legends caster stated on his and Duncan "Thorin" Shields' Summoning Insight show on Twitch that his sources have told him the format is changing next year.
"Here's a little spoiler for you guys, LCS is going to change to the LEC format next year, that's what my little sources say."
While there has been no word from the LCS on plans for the 2024 season, this would be a move that would likely be embraced by the community. For the longest time, the LCS has stuck to its routes of having two splits, with two best-of-one double round-robin regular seasons followed by the playoffs in both splits.
Although they did branch out into best-of-threes for a short period between the 2016 summer and 2017 summer splits, best-of-ones returned in 2018 when the LCS moved into its franchised model.
What is the LEC format?
The LEC format goes as followed, the ten partnered teams compete across three splits, Winter, Spring, and Summer. Each split is divided into three stages, the regular season, the group stage, and finally double-elimination playoffs.
- Regular season: Teams will compete in a single round robin with every game being a best-of-one. The top eight teams advance to the group stage.
- Group stage: The eight teams are divided into two groups of four. The teams will compete in a double-elimination GSL-style group. The top two teams from each group will advance to the playoffs.
- Playoffs: The remaining four teams will compete in a double-elimination bracket.
Throughout the season, the teams have been also been competing to earn qualification for the LEC Season Finals. This is the culmination of the LEC season. The Winter, Spring, and Summer champions will participate in the Finals, along with three teams with the highest championship points. Teams will earn championship points based on their performance in each split.
The LEC Finals is a double-elimination playoff tournament. Seeding will be determined on the teams' championship points. Each series is a best-of-five. The top three teams will qualify for the 2023 World Championship. The fourth-place team will earn a spot in the Worlds Qualifying Series '23.
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