Last November, we [teased][1] a major step forward in addressing the criticism leveled against the North American solo queue environment: [**Champions Queue**][2]. Today, we’re excited to announce that Champions Queue will officially launch on **Monday, February 7** for top North American talent and teams.
We view Champions Queue as the latest evolution of high-level competitive systems that previously existed within our community. To further encourage adoption and consistent use, we’re also introducing a seasonal format and prize pool within Champions Queue competition. With Champions Queue, we’ve created a productive tool that can have an immediate, positive impact on North American competition, built on feedback given by players, teams, coaches, analysts, the Player’s Association and other direct stakeholders.
All that said, let’s dig into the details!
CHAMPIONS QUEUE OVERVIEW
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At its core, Champions Queue takes inspiration from previous in-house systems that sought to provide alternative competitive options with low ping for players to raise their skill ceiling. When pros and top amateur talent alike requested a proactive way to continue leveling-up their play, we heard them.
Our response is Champions Queue — an exclusive, west-coast based competitive matchmaking experience for top North American players. Conducted through an invite-only Discord server, Champions Queue provides automatic lobby creation, player invites, comms channels and match result reporting, all held on a Tournament Realm that runs alongside the live patch. A web portal on [lolesports.com][3] will provide everything you need to know about Champion’s Queue, including the Champions Queue Leaderboard, match history, player stats, and a Hall of Champions for decorated winners.
Access to Champions Queue will be limited at the outset, open to all LCS and Academy players, LLA players, the Top 16 NA Amateur Teams from both of the Spring Proving Grounds Qualifiers, and a handful of recent LCS alumni. Outside of those groups, we're providing a public application for other top players (Master and above) to assess opportunities in expanding our competitive offerings at the highest level.
During Champions Queue Seasons, the queue will be active daily between 6pm - 1am Pacific Time, as well as 10am - 1am PST on Monday, providing focused windows of competition built around pro player scrims. All players must pass a behavior check to be admitted into Champions Queue. Player behavior will be closely monitored — it goes without saying, but unsportsmanlike behavior is strictly prohibited, with reported players reviewed by a council of pro players, amatuer players, LCS team staff, the LCSPA and Riot Games.
STRUCTURE AND PRIZING
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To help drive competition, Champions Queue will have a $400,000 prize pool, spread out across the new 2022 Champions Queue seasonal format.
Similar to the LCS schedule, Champions Queue will feature Spring and Summer Seasons, with three splits per season. Each split grants players points based on their final ranking on the competitive ladder, which resets each Season. Prizes are awarded to the top points holders at the end of every split, and again for the top players of each Season (based on cumulative points). After the World Championship, Champions Queue will host an additional Pre-Season Brawl to close out the year, with prizing awarded based on final placement.
Champions Queue Schedule
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[1]: https://lolesports.com/article/lcs-2022-format-update/bltec9364825d050f86
[2]: https://championsqueue.lolesports.com/en-us/
[3]: https://lolesports.com/
**Spring Season**
- Split 1: February 7 - March 7
- Split 2: March 14 - April 11
- Split 3: April 18 - May 23
**Summer Season**
- Split 1: May 30 - July 4
- Split 2: July 11 - August 15
- Split 3: August 22 - September 26
**Pre-Season Brawl**
- November 17 - Dec 13
For more information, check out the Champions Queue website at **[championsqueue.lolesports.com][1]**
[1]: https://championsqueue.lolesports.com/en-us/
