METRO MANILA — Riot Games Philippines recently announced it will launch Liga Republika in 2024 to reignite the PH League of Legends community.
Around 20 years ago, Defense of the Ancients (DoTA) was one of the Philippines’ most popular online and LAN games.
READ: How to play League of Legends
Eventually, Riot Games’ League of Legends took over its spotlight and became a major part of the eSports scene.
On April 26, 2024, Riot Games Brand Manager Kimi Salazar admitted that “eSports in the Philippines has not exactly a bit of what our players are looking for.”
“We’ve listened to our players to grow our local community,” she added.
That is why the gaming firm will launch Liga Republika with the following goal: “Introducing a League made by Pinoys, for Pinoy League of Legends players.”
Also, it will help Riot Games search for the best League of Legends teams from all over the country.
Country Manager Joel Guzman says the tournament will help these gamers prepare for future global tournaments.
The nationwide tournament will host over 300 LoL players to win the ₱1 million prize pool and other perks.
Riot Games will start things off with the Kickoff Invitational in May 2024. It will have eight teams from last year’s tournament, the Empyrean Cup 2023, competing for the top 4 slots.
In June 2024, Liga Republika will let 384 teams register for the Open Qualifiers.
A month later, it will let these teams compete for the top 12 spots. Afterwards, both Liga Republika segments will have 16 teams advance to the group stage in August.
Liga Republika’s grand finale will occur offline at a LAN event where the top eight teams will compete in front of a live audience.
The winner will earn the championship title and the lion’s share of the million-peso prize pool.
Riot invites fans to follow League of Legends’ Instagram and Facebook pages for the latest updates.
Aside from Liga Republika, the Country Manager says it will work with more online influencers and launch more events this year.