Riot suspends rank requirement to let LCS teams find subs in the face of player walkout

Riot Games is temporarily lifting solo queue ranking requirements for LCS players to let teams circumvent a potential player walkout.

As the LCS braces itself for a potential historical player walkout that could throw the league into disarray, Riot Games has reportedly given the ten franchise teams permission to sign substitute players past the roster deadline to make sure the tournament goes ahead as planned.

But more surprisingly, Riot has temporarily lifted the league’s solo queue ranking requirement, opening the LCS’ doors to all sorts of players, even those in the lowest rankings, content creator Travis Gafford said on May 29’s Hotline League.

According to the 2023 LCS rule set, all league players “must have held a peak solo queue ranking within the last year of Diamond 1 or above.”

Earlier on May 29, the LCS Players Association (LCSPA) revealed that it was aware that teams were being pressured “to field scab players” for the start of the season. It said that it was in contact with players outside of the LCS to dissuade them from playing, stressing that the “walkout is for the benefit of all League players in North America”.

Gafford added that, at least for this weekend, players are not required to be physically present at the Riot Games Arena, in Los Angeles, and could compete from anywhere.

This is the latest chapter in the ongoing LCSPA versus Riot Games saga that began when the developer lifted the requirement that stated LCS teams needed to field a roster in the North American Challengers League (NACL). After its concerns and list of requests were ignored by Riot, the association called on a walkout vote, which “overwhelmingly passed”.

The 2023 LCS Summer is scheduled to start on June 1 at 2 pm PT / 5 pm ET, with all ten teams in action.

Dexerto has put together an explainer article about the potential walkout and everything leading up to this point. You can read it by clicking here.