Written by Dante Uzel on 16 December 2024 14:46
Riot Games, the developer behind VALORANT and League of Legends, has announced that starting in 2025, its partnered esports teams will be allowed to sign betting sponsorships. This decision, shared with League of Legends and VCT teams in the Americas and EMEA, marks a significant shift in Riot's previous policy of excluding betting brands from its esports competitions.
However, Riot Games has made it clear that betting logos and branding will not appear on official Riot broadcasts. This update was initially revealed by esports personality MonteCristo last week, with further confirmation from Whalen Rozelle, Riot’s COO of Esports.
This marks a major departure from Riot’s earlier stance, as the company had been strongly against betting partnerships in its esports competitions. Previously, Riot did not allow its partner teams to secure betting sponsors for their League of Legends and VALORANT rosters.
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Under the new policy, esports organizations in the LEC, LTA, VCT Americas, and VCT EMEA will be allowed to partner with betting companies starting in 2025. However, these partnerships cannot be promoted through Riot’s official channels, including broadcasts. As Rozelle explained, "the decision was not made lightly" and was the result of "careful planning and study to settle on a move that will unlock new revenue opportunities for teams."
Riot Games will continue to keep its own broadcasts, social media, and team jerseys free of betting brand sponsorships for the foreseeable future. "No betting brands will appear on broadcasts, socials or jerseys," Rozelle confirmed.
Additionally, Riot will vet all potential betting partners to ensure they meet the company’s standards. As Rozelle noted, “All sports books partnering with teams will need to meet local regulatory and licensing requirements and match Riot requirements around content and promotion for this category.”
This change means that, for example, a team in the LEC can partner with a betting brand to support its League of Legends roster but cannot feature the brand’s logo on jerseys. While many teams have yet to respond publicly, Adam Adamou, CEO of OverActive Media, mentioned that Movistar KOI would not pursue betting partnerships.
Tags: Riot Games
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