Riot Opens Doors to Betting: Sponsorships Arrive at Competitive League of Legends and Valorant

Riot’s director of publishing and esports, John Needham, announced that Riot Games will accept sponsorships from betting companies for professional League of Legends and Valorant tournaments in the Americas and EMEA regions. This move excludes other parts of the competitive circuit. The change comes after requests from pro teams looking for new revenue streams. Riot argues this shift is to create a “sustainable ecosystem,” acknowledging that betting on their games happens informally, often on unregulated sites. A Sportradar report shows that over $10.7 billion in bets were made just on League of Legends, with 70% going through unlicensed platforms. For this new phase, Riot has set three main priorities: generating revenue via betting house partnerships, promoting regulation and education about esports betting, and preserving the integrity of competitions. A portion of the earnings will help lower-tier events facing financial difficulties. Although betting ads won’t be in official event transmissions, they might appear during co-transmissions, which account for around 40% of the Worlds (League of Legends annual major tournament) viewership, as per Esports Charts data.

Amid the sustainability crisis in the esports industry right now, Riot Games is stepping up by allowing betting sponsorships in pro League of Legends and Valorant competitions across the Americas and EMEA regions. This move’s aim is to generate new revenue sources for struggling teams while keeping a check on informal betting on unregulated sites. The cash will help smaller tournaments stay afloat, but you won’t see ads for these betting firms in official event broadcasts – co-streams might contain them instead. Riot Games insists that all partners will go through verification processes and install integrity control mechanisms to keep things fair and above board.