TSM Spica leaks major changes to LCS 2021 format

TSM jungler Mingyi ‘Spica’ Lu appeared to leak major changes to the format of the LCS 2021 season on his livestream. With LCS bosses keen to rejuvenate the competition, the future of the Spring Split could be down the drain.

Since 2015, the LCS season has been defined by two splits: spring and summer. Each split has a double round-robin, where every team plays each other twice, and the top 6 go through to a play-off series. Simple.

However, major changes to the LCS structure have been rumored to be in the works. Travis Gafford reported LCS powers were considering binning off the spring split altogether, with the season being changed instead to one long split.

The format would mean every team would play a total of 45 regular-season games, up by nine from the current amount of 36. There would also be a small play-off tournament midway through to determine the region’s representatives at the Mid-Season Invitational.

TSM Spica leaks changes to LCS 2021 format

Live on stream, Spica appeared to suggest the rumored changes to the LCS format were indeed true. He said:

“There’s 45 games next split and I’ll probably be on Jarvan all 45 games.”

TSM’s ex-coach Parth seemed to back up Spica, as he wrote in Twitch chat: “spring = 18 games, summer = 27 games.”

Spica then lightly suggested there might be some bad consequences for Parth, as he joked: “Yo Parth, you can’t leak, man. You know, I might need to take you on a walk.”

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Spica’s suggestion of there being 45 games “next split”, partially backed up by Parth, means Gafford’s sources are likely spot on.

The changes to the format come as little surprise. When the original Worlds Qualification system – where teams could earn ‘circuit points’ in spring to boost their chances of qualifying – was scrapped, Spring Split became redundant for anyone bar the winner.

This was punctuated by the 2020 Spring champions Cloud9 ultimately failing to reach Worlds. Making the LCS a streamlined, season-long affair would mean teams would be judged on their achievements across the year, rather than just over a few months.

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Whether the other rumoured changes, such as the mid-season play-off for MSI, a reduced academy season, and a pre-season tournament, will also materialize remains to be seen.

Regardless, the merging of the spring and summer splits would be one of the biggest shakeups in the history of the LCS.