League of Legends Game Changers for women in EMEA is finally here

The first official women’s League of Legends tournament in EMEA is finally happening. The League of Legends Game Changers will serve as the overall circuit for women in EMEA, with LGC Rising being its inaugural competition.

After successful initiatives in VALORANT with Game Changers, Riot is now aiming to replicate that momentum in the League competitive ecosystem. As Riot put it, LGC Rising is the ‘first step’ in building a ‘meaningful competitive ecosystem’ for women across the region, kicking off in August and culminating in a live Grand Final at Paris Games Week this October.

This launch doesn’t come out of nowhere. Earlier reports in January hinted at Riot’s plans for a women’s league inspired by VALORANT’s successful Game Changers format. However, this initiative has been atop the list of requests from the community for a long time as it builds on the progress of years of local grassroots tournaments like Germany’s Equal Esports Cup and France’s Coupe des Étoiles. 

“We’ve seen what Game Changers can do in VALORANT — now we want to create the same kind of impact in League,” Riot said. “This isn’t just a one-off tournament; it’s the beginning of a new path.”

Moreover, Riot emphasized that LEC organisations are fully behind the LGC initiative and will be supporting the scene ‘every step of the way.’ This could mean that a few other LEC organisations—besides G2, SK Gaming and Team Vitality who already have an active all-women League roster—could be picking up their own LGC rosters in the near future.

LGC Rising will begin with online qualifiers in August and run through to the Grand Final on October 30th, held live at Paris Games Week, which had hosted the first VALORANT mixed-gender tournament in 2024.

For LGC Rising, Riot is taking a steady approach to the first edition, emphasising that this is a ‘pilot’ event, but one designed to grow with the scene over time.

Similarly to VCT Game Changers rules, participation in LGC Rising is only open to players who identify as women to provide a ‘safe, respectful and competitive’ space where women can thrive, Riot noted. 

LGC Rising will have eight teams competing, with three direct invites likely going to organisations already fielding women’s rosters—most likely those linked to LEC organisations. The other three teams will qualify through the Equal Esports Cup, and two more will be selected from an open qualifier scheduled for early August.

The tournament’s format will have teams face off in two round-robin groups of four teams with best-of-one matches. The top three from each group move into a double-elimination playoff bracket with best-of-five matches, though Riot has yet to share whether the Bo5 will feature Fearless Draft or not.