Among all regions in the world of League of Legends, the LPL and LCK are the two strongest growing names. These are also the two regions with incredibly large communities that meet both professional and reputational demands. Not to mention, while the LCK is seen as the dominant region with its titles, the LPL is known as the region with one of the largest communities, and is currently regarded as the “new home” of League of Legends, with Tencent owning the majority share of Riot.
However, the LPL is truly showing signs of danger. For those who don’t know, since the LPL has continuously struggled at international tournaments, the appeal of League of Legends in the land of over a billion people, which already faced a lot of competition, could become even more difficult. A few years ago, the LPL had to use various methods, including performances by female hosts to attract attention. Now, after a not-so-successful year in the World Championship 2023, the LPL has been increasingly “ignored” by the audience. Especially with a series of famous players like TheShy, Doinb, and Uzi no longer competing or livestreaming. While the remaining names, aside from a few top teams, are still quite unfamiliar.
Recently, according to H4cker – a member of Ultra Prime, the match between them and Rare Atom had only about ten viewers. Usually, those watching the LPL tournaments have the chance to win lucky prizes and interact with players at the end of the match. The “laughable” situation is that the staff had to pretend to be the lucky audience to receive these prizes.
It can be seen that, aside from the top teams, the LPL is currently facing significant difficulties, especially those teams with poor performance or without standout players. The incident of UP – RA (if true) could very well continue. Not to mention, at the recent MSI 2024, the LPL could no longer maintain its dominance. And the crisis in this region may just be beginning.