As we know, Worlds skins are an essential part of the tournament, created by Riot’s design team in collaboration with the championship team players. These Worlds skins not only honor the champions of the tournament but also contribute significantly to the income of the victorious players. According to Riot’s rules, 25% of the profits from the sale of Worlds skins in the first year will belong to the players. Therefore, in the League of Legends scene, Faker stands to benefit the most from this skin line as he owns 3 Worlds skins.
However, according to a recent revelation from T1’s CEO, a portion of the profits from the sales of Worlds skins will also be shared with all other teams in the LCK. Specifically, he mentioned in a conversation with streamer LS: “For me, this is a bit strange, but many teams that do not even qualify for Worlds will still receive a share of the profits from selling Worlds skins.” The T1 CEO’s statement surprised streamer LS as well. However, the CEO also shared that T1 received profits from DRX’s skins last year.
This has left League of Legends fans quite surprised. In many people’s minds, Worlds skins typically only share 25% with the players, and this is seen as part of the prize money from the tournament, alongside the money they receive immediately after winning. However, the idea that other teams in the region also receive money from the sales of Worlds skins is still somewhat puzzling.
However, according to some opinions, this is fundamentally not surprising. Smaller teams or those with tighter budgets also need funds to maintain their competitive operations. Sharing this profit has some similarities to revenue sharing in other sports.
Furthermore, with the franchise model, the teams participating in the league must also pay a certain fee. Additionally, according to some information, LCK has implemented revenue sharing, especially aimed at teams with poor performances. The reason is that these teams are often less prestigious, have little investment, and the prize money from the tournament is minimal.
Moreover, according to T1’s CEO, this situation is not entirely unfamiliar to League of Legends fans, especially in the LCK region, as T1 also benefits from DRX’s skins. And perhaps, this issue is currently heating up due to T1’s popularity and their status as the reigning Worlds champions.