A few hours ago, the LCK organizers officially announced the new format for the LCK 2021 playoffs.
Specifically, the LCK 2021 playoffs will feature a single-elimination format with 6 qualifying teams divided into 2 main brackets. The first bracket will be top 3 vs. top 6 (winner faces top 1), while the second bracket will be top 4 vs. top 5 (winner faces top 2).
With this change, the team that finishes first in the group stage will not be able to “hide their strategies” and wait for the finals as in previous seasons, allowing the “underdog” teams to analyze and find weaknesses in their opponents.
Here are some other changes in Korean League of Legends for the upcoming season:
The minimum annual salary for professional players and head coaches has increased to 60 million won (approximately 1.2 billion VND), while for coaches it is 40 million won (approximately 800 million VND). The total prize pool for the tournament has also increased significantly, with first place prize rising from 100 million to 200 million won, second place from 60 million to 100 million won, and a slight increase in prizes for lower positions.
The organizers also introduced new branding for the second-tier tournament, the LCK Challenges League (LCK CL). Additionally, players in the LCK and LCK CL can transfer during three periods: at the beginning of the group stage, after the first round of the group stage, and at the start of the playoffs.
Furthermore, a tournament called the LCK Academy Series will be regularly held for trainees to practice and acclimate to the professional gaming environment of Korean League of Legends.
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