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It is not a great concept.

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Riot Games believes that "constructing the future of esports indicates buying a sustainable environment, not simply for today, but for the long term," Riot's president of publishing and esports John Needham stated today, and that's why the studio has actually chosen to unlock to "wagering sponsorship chances" for Tier 1 League of Legends and Valorant groups in the US and EMEA.

" We understand sports wagering isn't for everybody, and that some fans have strong feelings about it, and we respect that," Needham wrote in today's statement. "However, the reality is that wagering activity currently exists around our sports and will continue whether we engage with it or not.
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" Historically, this has been a category, and Riot has not engaged with wagering companies. Teams have asked us to reevaluate our position, and after years of analysis to ensure we got it right, we concurred it was time to open this classification to create more income opportunities for groups."

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  There sure does appear to be a lot of money on the table. Needham cited figures supplied by "sports technology business" Sportradar saying the "total betting turnover" on League of Legends and Valorant esports hit $10.7 billion worldwide in 2024. But 70% of wagering across all sports-not simply esports-is made in unregulated markets with unlicensed bookies, and Riot figures it's much better for all included if it transfers to permit wagering sponsorships "thoughtfully, thoroughly, and with the best defenses."
  
  That implies Riot needs to vet and approve all possible betting partners before they're allowed to form a relationship with a group; potential wagering partners should utilize official information offered by the GRID platform in their offerings; and all groups should develop an "Internal Integrity Program" that will "guarantee competitive stability, protect players and young audiences, [and] upgrade responsible betting practices."
  
  While Riot is accepting sports betting, it likewise appears to be taking steps to guarantee it's not actually seen to be embracing sports wagering.
  
  " Riot-owned broadcast and social channels will remain betting-free, which implies no advertisements, no sponsored sectors from wagering partners, and no betting partner logos on team jerseys," seemingly to avoid interfering with broadcasts with a flood of sports betting advertisements, Needham composed. Individual teams will be delegated determine how betting-related content appears within their channels, subject to all applicable standards and regional laws.
  
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  To put it mildly, I have concerns. The ol' 'it's going to happen anyway so we must guarantee it's done right' validation is almost never as high-minded as it exists, and the real issue with sports gaming isn't that it's unregulated or sketchy, but that it's a scourge.
  
  The World Health Organization says that "around 5.5% of ladies and 11.9% of men globally experience some level of harm from gaming," and cites a Swedish research study showing that people with betting problems were 15 times more likely to die of suicide than the basic population. Despite that, gambling "has actually been normalized through brand-new industrial associations with sport and cultural activities that are now heavily promoted." Now Riot is going to contribute to that normalization for an audience that skews more youthful than those of standard sports, a group the WHO states is particularly prone to "heavy promo of betting online."
  
  I take some small comfort in seeing that responses to the announcement on the League of Legends and Valorant Competitive subreddits are not completely positive. There's a lot of resigned acceptance and some careful (perhaps a little forced) optimism about much better income shares for Tier 2 teams, but also a lot of issue about the long-term social impact of endemic sports betting.
  
  The possibility of increased toxicity or even violence versus esports pros at the hands of angry gamblers was also raised: "It's going to be particularly bad for League/Val players because they are way more online than typical sport professional athletes," redditor CosmicMiru wrote.
  
  So it looks like an awful concept all around, a minimum of for anybody who doesn't stand to earn money on it, but Needham concluded by saying Riot believes "revealing up in this space-responsibly-is better than letting others define it for us."
  
  " We've said before that Riot is all in for the long term on our esports, which implies stepping into arenas like sports betting with an unbiased to both guide and protect our brand names from bad actors by establishing what good looks like, while likewise supplying an avenue for teams to benefit financially," he composed.
  
  " With any brand-new undertaking, there will be obstacles, and if we need to make adjustments, we will. Please know our total commitment is to do right by our gamers, teams, and fans in addition to the world-class esports experience that we've developed together and want to see prosper for years to come."
  
  Andy has actually been video gaming on PCs from the very start, starting as a child with text experiences and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to construct PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He started writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to prevent getting fired up until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the market, from brand-new game announcements and patch notes to legal disagreements, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Great Deals Of Henry Cavill.