Riot Games have announced that the exclusive matchmaking service for League of Legends is returning for Worlds 2022.
The summer split has just come to an end. In LPL, we saw JD Gaming, Top Esports, Edward Gaming, and RNG qualifying for Worlds. In LCK, we saw Gen.G take first place, followed by T1 in second place and Damwon Gaming in third place. Therefore, they are automatically qualified for group stage competitions, and DRX, in fourth place, was qualified for Worlds 2022 play-ins stage.
From LEC: G2 Esports, Rogue, and Mad Lions, and from LCS: Cloud 9 and 100 Thieves are confirmed to be in Worlds. Though, from LCS and LEC, more teams will join since the series is still ongoing.
Now that the summer season for LoL Esports has almost come to an end, we can look forward to Worlds 2022, which should kick off on September 29 in Mexico City.
And since Worlds 2022 is on the horizon, professional players need a place where they can practice and adapt to the meta for the tournament. For that, Riot has officially announced the return of the exclusive North American matchmaking service, Champions Queue.
Read more: Confirmed Worlds 2022 Teams So Far
What is Champions Queue
Champions Queue is a competitive matchmaking service for professional League of Legends players in North America. The matchmaking is open on limited time frames, and players will play all the matches in the Worlds patch (12.18).
What Will Champions Queue Include
It will include a fully integrated voice comms, an MMR system, and a redesigned, Worlds-themed public leaderboard. It will also have a shorter queue time than the regular solo queue since Champions Queue will only run during limited time frames.
Server Locations
The servers for the Champions Queue will be near the Worlds locations to have the best connections for every participating pro player. Currently, those locations are:
- Mexico City (For Play-ins)
- Chicago (Groups – Semi-Finals)
- Los Angeles (Finals)
How to gain access
All the current CQ players will be given access after a pending review by the CQ Council.
Players currently competing in Worlds 2022 and boot camping pro players can gain access to Champions Queue.
Riot is also expanding the spectator pool. Content creators can gain access by contacting their local LPP manager. However, all Champions Queue streaming will be prohibited during the live Worlds broadcast.
Prizing
On the previous Champions Queue, one of the most incentivizing reasons to play was for prizes. Before, players could win up to $25,000 by playing Champions Queue.
But now, in this Champions Queue, Riot games won’t be offering any prizes. The reason is that Riot Games wants CQ to be primarily for practice for Worlds, and removing prizes should keep a more competitive focus on the tournament.
