Dignitas eSports Denied Access to League of Legends 2018 Season

Typically, I keep my love of League of Legends eSports and my news-reporting very separate, as I understand it's a very niche part of the gaming world and League of Legends itself tends to be a bit decisive in circles. But sometimes, like in World Championships or if the news is just weird, I like to break that little rule and today, we have something in the latter category.

Team Dignitas, an eSports team owned by the Philadelphia 76ers, has been playing League of Legends professionally since 2011, making them one of the oldest and most successful names in the entire North America League of Legends series. They've never exactly been world championship material (but then, neither has crowd favorite TSM) and this year they were decidedly average, ending the season at 5th-6th at the end of spring.

Which is why its come as a bit of a surprise that Riot Games, the developer behind League of Legends and gatekeeper on who gets to participate in the league, has refused to allow Dignitas to compete in the 2018 season.

This means that before November 21, the team will have to sell or let go of all their players. They'll probably get their $10 million entrance fee back, and on top of that will rather get a compensation package from the fees paid by the teams that successfully secured the ten seats available for the season. Plus, there are other games that team Dignitas plays, so it's not as if they're being booted from eSports entirely.

Still! The real mystery here is what Riot Games is thinking. Are there more promising teams vying for those ten spots? Is the company trying to shake up the league? Did something happen behind-the-scenes? Unlike many mysteries that wind up on our plate, this one might simply remain unanswered but I'll keep my eyes peeled anyway.