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2020 LCS season#Summer

{{Short description|Eighth season of North America's League of Legends Championship Series}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2020}}

{{Infobox sports season

| title = 2020 LCS season

| logo =

| league = LCS

| sport = League of Legends

| duration = {{ubl

| January 25 – April 19 (Spring)

| June 12 – September 6 (Summer)

}}

| no_of_matches =

| no_of_teams = 10

| TV = {{ubl

| {{nowrap|English: ESPN2, Twitch, YouTube}}

| Chinese: Huya

}}

| season = Spring

| top_seed = Cloud9

| MVP = Robert "Blaber" Huang

| MVP_link =

| season_champ_name = Champions

| season_champs = Cloud9

| second_place = FlyQuest

| season2 = Summer

| top_seed2 = Team Liquid

| MVP2 = Jo "CoreJJ" Yong-in

| MVP_link2 =

| season_champ2_name = Champions

| season_champs2 = Team SoloMid

| second_place2 = FlyQuest

| seasonslist =

| seasonslistnames = LCS

| prevseason_link = 2019 LCS season

| prevseason_year = 2019

| nextseason_link = 2021 LCS season

| nextseason_year = 2021

}}

The 2020 LCS season was the eighth season of the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS), a professional esports league for the video game League of Legends. The season was divided into two splits: Spring and Summer. The Spring Split began on January 25 and culminated playoff finals on April 19, 2020. The Summer Split began on June 12 and culminated with the Spring Split finals on September 6, 2020. Most matches were played online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cloud9 won the spring split playoffs, qualifying them for the 2020 Mid-Season Invitational (MSI). However, the MSI was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the summer split playoffs, Team SoloMid, FlyQuest, and Team Liquid claimed the first, second, and third positions, respectively, earning qualifications to the 2020 World Championship.

Format changes

For the 2020 season, the league implemented a series of format changes. The league removed the "Championship points" system that was introduced in 2015. In this new structure, victories during the spring split would solely serve to qualify a team for the Mid-Season Invitational. The regional qualifying tournament, which was used to advance teams to the World Championship, was also eliminated. Instead, the top three teams from the summer split playoffs earned the right to advance to the World Championship. The LCS also changed its playoff format to a double-elimination bracket, and the number of teams participating summer playoffs was increased from six to eight.{{cite news |last1=Rand |first1=Emily |title=Riot announces Monday Night League, other changes to LCS |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/28442227/riot-announces-monday-night-league-other-changes-league-legends-championship-series |access-date=November 11, 2023 |work=ESPN |date=January 7, 2020 |language=en}}

Spring

The Spring Split regular season ran from January 25 to March 22, 2020.{{cite news |title=2020 LCS Format |url=https://nexus.leagueoflegends.com/en-us/2020/01/2020-lcs-format/ |access-date=November 12, 2023 |work=League of Legends Esports |date=January 8, 2020}} The regular season followed a standard double round-robin format, where each team faced every other team twice, and each game was played in a best-of-one format.{{cite news |title=LCS Spring Split kicks off in L.A. with four winners |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/esports-lol-lcs-spring-split-recap/lcs-spring-split-kicks-off-in-l-a-with-four-winners-idUSFLM86Xl8h |access-date=November 12, 2023 |work=Reuters |agency=Field Level Media |date=January 26, 2020 |language=en}} In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, LCS commissioner Chris Greeley announced the suspension of the 2020 season on March 13, 2020, with no definite timeframe for resumption. Subsequently, the LCS resumed its competitions through online play, starting on April 18, 2020.{{cite news |title=How coronavirus is affecting esports and gaming events |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/28852881/how-coronavirus-affecting-esports-gaming-events |access-date=October 15, 2023 |work=ESPN |date=March 25, 2020 |language=en}}{{cite news |title=2020 LCS spring split to finish online as planned |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/28953076/2020-lcs-spring-split-finish-online-planned |access-date=October 15, 2023 |work=ESPN |agency=Reuters |date=March 25, 2020 |language=en}}

The top six teams from the regular season advanced to the playoffs, a double-elimination tournament, which ran from March 28 to April 19, 2020. The top four teams started in the upper bracket of the playoffs, and the fifth and sixth seeds started in the lower bracket. The top-seeded team had their selection for their first round opponents between the third seed and the fourth seed. The winner of the playoffs would advance to the 2020 Mid-Season Invitational (MSI). However, the 2020 MSI was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.{{cite news |last1=Goslin |first1=Austen |title=League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational canceled due to coronavirus pandemic |url=https://www.polygon.com/2020/4/23/21232943/league-of-legends-mid-season-invitational-msi-canceled-riot-games |access-date=November 12, 2023 |work=Polygon |date=April 23, 2020}}

The lower bracket final and grand final were planned to take place at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.{{cite news |last1=Hitt |first1=Kevin |title=2020 LCS Spring Finals to be Held in Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas |url=https://archive.esportsobserver.com/2020-lcs-spring-finals-texas/ |access-date=November 12, 2023 |work=The Esports Observer |date=January 25, 2020}} However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was moved to Riot's Los Angeles studio.{{cite news |title=2020 LCS spring split to finish online as planned |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/28953076/2020-lcs-spring-split-finish-online-planned |access-date=November 12, 2023 |work=ESPN |agency=Reuters |date=March 25, 2020 |language=en}}

= Regular season =

{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=WL

|for_against_style=none|ranking_style=perc

| update = complete | source = [https://lolesports.com/standings/lcs/lcs_spring_2020/regular_season LoL Esports]

| team3 = 100 | name_100 = 100 Thieves

| team1 = C9 | name_C9 = Cloud9

| team10 = CLG | name_CLG = Counter Logic Gaming

| team7 = DIG | name_DIG = Dignitas

| team2 = EG | name_EG = Evil Geniuses

| team4 = FLY | name_FLY = FlyQuest

| team6 = GG | name_GG = Golden Guardians

| team8 = IMT | name_IMT = Immortals

| team9 = TL | name_TL = Team Liquid

| team5 = TSM | name_TSM = Team SoloMid

| win_100 = 11 | loss_100 = 9

| win_C9 = 17 | loss_C9 = 1

| win_CLG = 3 | loss_CLG = 15

| win_DIG = 9 | loss_DIG = 11

| win_EG = 11 | loss_EG = 8

| win_FLY = 10 | loss_FLY = 9

| win_GG = 9 | loss_GG = 10

| win_IMT = 8 | loss_IMT = 11

| win_TL = 7 | loss_TL = 11

| win_TSM = 9 | loss_TSM = 9

| result1 = WB | result2 = WB

| result3 = WB | result4 = WB

| result5 = LB | result6 = LB

| res_col_header = Q

| col_WB = green1 | text_WB = Advance to upper semifinals

| col_LB = blue1 | text_LB = Advance to lower quarterfinals

}}

= Playoffs =

== Bracket ==

{{6TeamBracket-2Elim|upperstyle=3

| boldwinner = high

| RD1 = Upper semifinals

| RD1b = Lower quarterfinals

| RD2b = Lower semifinal

| RD1-seed1 = 1

| RD1-team1 = Cloud9

| RD1-score1 = 3

| RD1-seed2 = 3

| RD1-team2 = 100 Thieves

| RD1-score2 = 0

| RD1-seed3 = 2

| RD1-team3 = Evil Geniuses

| RD1-score3 = 3

| RD1-seed4 = 4

| RD1-team4 = FlyQuest

| RD1-score4 = 1

| RD1b-seed1 = 3

| RD1b-team1 = 100 Thieves

| RD1b-score1 = 2

| RD1b-seed2 = 5

| RD1b-team2 = Team SoloMid

| RD1b-score2 = 3

| RD1b-seed3 = 4

| RD1b-team3 = FlyQuest

| RD1b-score3 = 3

| RD1b-seed4 = 6

| RD1b-team4 = Golden Guardians

| RD1b-score4 = 0

| RD2-seed1 = 1

| RD2-team1 = Cloud9

| RD2-score1 = 3

| RD2-seed2 = 2

| RD2-team2 = Evil Geniuses

| RD2-score2 = 1

| RD2b-seed1 = 5

| RD2b-team1 = Team SoloMid

| RD2b-score1 = 2

| RD2b-seed2 = 4

| RD2b-team2 = FlyQuest

| RD2b-score2 = 3

| RD3b-seed1 = 2

| RD3b-team1 = Evil Geniuses

| RD3b-score1 = 1

| RD3b-seed2 = 4

| RD3b-team2 = FlyQuest

| RD3b-score2 = 3

| RD4-seed1 = 1

| RD4-team1 = Cloud9

| RD4-score1 = 3

| RD4-seed2 = 4

| RD4-team2 = FlyQuest

| RD4-score2 = 0

}}

== Final standings ==

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

! width=28 | {{abbr|Pos|Position}}

! width=190 | Team

! Qualification

style="background-color:#BBF3BB;"

| 1

| style="text-align:left"| Cloud9

| 2020 Mid-Season Invitational{{efn|The 2020 Mid-Season Invitational was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.}}

2

| style="text-align:left"| FlyQuest

| rowspan="5"|

3

| style="text-align:left"| Evil Geniuses

4

| style="text-align:left"| Team SoloMid

rowspan="2" | 5–6

| style="text-align:left"| 100 Thieves

style="text-align:left"| Golden Guardians

= Awards =

{{stack begin|float=left|margin=true}}

  • 1st Team All-Pro:{{cite news |last1=Binkowski |first1=Justin |title=Cloud9’s entire starting lineup named to 2020 LCS Spring Split All-Pro first team |url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/c9-starting-lineup-2020-lcs-spring-split-all-pro-first-team |access-date=October 7, 2023 |work=Dot Esports |date=April 3, 2020}}
  • {{abbr|T|Top}} Licorice, Cloud9
  • {{abbr|J|Jungle}} Blaber, Cloud9
  • {{abbr|M|Mid}} Nisqy, Cloud9
  • {{abbr|B|Bottom}} Zven, Cloud9
  • {{abbr|S|Support}} Vulcan, Cloud9

{{stack end}}

{{stack begin|float=left|margin=true}}

{{stack end}}

{{stack begin|float=left}}

{{stack end}}

{{clear}}

  • Most Valuable Player: Blaber, Cloud9{{cite news |last1=Stavropoulos |first1=Andreas |title=C9 Blaber wins 2020 LCS Spring MVP award |url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/c9-blaber-wins-2020-lcs-spring-mvp-award |access-date=October 7, 2023 |work=Dot Esports |date=April 17, 2020}}
  • Coaching Staff of the Split: Cloud9{{cite news |last1=Geracie |first1=Nick |title=Cloud9 Head Coach Reapered awarded Coach of the Split in 17-1 LCS Spring Split|url=https://www.invenglobal.com/articles/10927/official-cloud9-head-coach-reapered-awarded-coach-of-the-split-in-17-1-lcs-spring-split |access-date=October 7, 2023 |work=Inven Global |date=April 10, 2020}}

Summer

The Summer Split regular season was planned to run from June 20 to August 16, 2020. However, due to the cancellation of the 2020 MSI, the starting date was pushed forward to June 13.{{cite news |title=2020 LCS Summer Split begins on June 13 |url=https://lolesports.com/article/2020-lcs-summer-split-begins-on-june-13/blte1d1d7ba6917bcf4 |access-date=November 12, 2023 |work=League of Legends Esports |date=April 27, 2020}} The Summer Split regular season followed the same format as the Spring Split. The top eight teams from the summer regular season secured spots in the Summer Split playoffs, which ran from August 20 to September 13, 2020. The playoffs played as a featured a double-elimination tournament, with top two teams starting in the upper bracket semifinals, the following four starting in the upper bracket quarterfinals, and the remaining two starting in the lower bracket. The top three teams from the playoffs qualified for the 2020 League of Legends World Championship.

= Regular season =

{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=WL

|for_against_style=none|ranking_style=perc

| update = complete | source = [https://lolesports.com/standings/lcs/lcs_summer_2020/regular_season LoL Esports]

| team7 = 100 | name_100 = 100 Thieves

| team2 = C9 | name_C9 = Cloud9

| team9 = CLG | name_CLG = Counter Logic Gaming

| team8 = DIG | name_DIG = Dignitas

| team6 = EG | name_EG = Evil Geniuses

| team3 = FLY | name_FLY = FlyQuest

| team5 = GG | name_GG = Golden Guardians

| team10 = IMT | name_IMT = Immortals

| team1 = TL | name_TL = Team Liquid

| team4 = TSM | name_TSM = Team SoloMid

| win_100 = 7 | loss_100 = 11

| win_C9 = 13 | loss_C9 = 5

| win_CLG = 5 | loss_CLG = 14

| win_DIG = 6 | loss_DIG = 13

| win_EG = 8 | loss_EG = 10

| win_FLY = 12 | loss_FLY = 6

| win_GG = 9 | loss_GG = 9

| win_IMT = 4 | loss_IMT = 14

| win_TL = 15 | loss_TL = 3

| win_TSM = 12 | loss_TSM = 6

| result1 = W2 | result2 = W2

| result3 = WB | result4 = WB

| result5 = WB | result6 = WB

| result7 = LB | result8 = LB

| res_col_header = Q

| col_W2 = green1 | text_W2 = Advance to upper semifinals

| col_WB = green2 | text_WB = Advance to upper quarterfinals

| col_LB = blue1 | text_LB = Advance to lower round 1

}}

= Playoffs =

== Bracket ==

{{8TeamBracket-2Elim|upperstyle=2

| boldwinner = high

| RD1 = Upper quarterfinals

| RD2 = Upper semifinals

| RD2b = Lower quarterfinals

| RD3b = Lower semifinal

| RD1-seed1 = 4

| RD1-team1 = Team SoloMid

| RD1-score1 = 0

| RD1-seed2 = 5

| RD1-team2 = Golden Guardians

| RD1-score2 = 3

| RD1-seed3 = 3

| RD1-team3 = FlyQuest

| RD1-score3 = 3

| RD1-seed4 = 6

| RD1-team4 = Evil Geniuses

| RD1-score4 = 2

| RD2-seed1 = 1

| RD2-team1 = Team Liquid

| RD2-score1 = 3

| RD2-seed2 = 5

| RD2-team2 = Golden Guardians

| RD2-score2 = 0

| RD2-seed3 = 2

| RD2-team3 = Cloud9

| RD2-score3 = 1

| RD2-seed4 = 3

| RD2-team4 = FlyQuest

| RD2-score4 = 3

| RD3-seed1 = 1

| RD3-team1 = Team Liquid

| RD3-score1 = 2

| RD3-seed2 = 3

| RD3-team2 = FlyQuest

| RD3-score2 = 3

| RD1b-seed1 = 4

| RD1b-team1 = Team SoloMid

| RD1b-score1 = 3

| RD1b-seed2 = 8

| RD1b-team2 = Dignitas

| RD1b-score2 = 0

| RD1b-seed3 = 6

| RD1b-team3 = Evil Geniuses

| RD1b-score3 = 3

| RD1b-seed4 = 7

| RD1b-team4 = 100 Thieves

| RD1b-score4 = 0

| RD2b-seed1 = 5

| RD2b-team1 = Golden Guardians

| RD2b-score1 = 2

| RD2b-seed2 = 4

| RD2b-team2 = Team SoloMid

| RD2b-score2 = 3

| RD2b-seed4 = 6

| RD2b-team4 = Evil Geniuses

| RD2b-score4 = 0

| RD2b-seed3 = 2

| RD2b-team3 = Cloud9

| RD2b-score3 = 3

| RD3b-seed1 = 4

| RD3b-team1 = Team SoloMid

| RD3b-score1 = 3

| RD3b-seed2 = 2

| RD3b-team2 = Cloud9

| RD3b-score2 = 1

| RD4b-seed1 = 1

| RD4b-team1 = Team Liquid

| RD4b-score1 = 2

| RD4b-seed2 = 4

| RD4b-team2 = Team SoloMid

| RD4b-score2 = 3

| RD5-seed1 = 3

| RD5-team1 = FlyQuest

| RD5-score1 = 2

| RD5-seed2 = 4

| RD5-team2 = Team SoloMid

| RD5-score2 = 3

}}

== Final standings ==

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

! width=28 | {{abbr|Pos|Position}}

! width=190 | Team

! Qualification

style="background-color:#BBF3BB;"

| 1

| style="text-align:left"| Team SoloMid

| rowspan="3" | 2020 League of Legends World Championship

style="background-color:#BBF3BB;"

| 2

| style="text-align:left"| FlyQuest

style="background-color:#BBF3BB;"

| 3

| style="text-align:left"| Team Liquid

4

| style="text-align:left"| Cloud9

| rowspan="5" |

rowspan="2" | 5–6

| style="text-align:left"| Evil Geniuses

style="text-align:left"| Golden Guardians
rowspan="2" | 7–8

| style="text-align:left"| 100 Thieves

style="text-align:left"| Dignitas

= Awards =

{{stack begin|float=left|margin=true}}

  • 1st Team All-Pro:{{cite news |last1=Esguerra |first1=Tyler |title=LCS unveils 2020 Summer Split All-Pro team |url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/lcs-unveils-2020-summer-split-all-pro-team |access-date=October 7, 2023 |work=Dot Esports |date=August 14, 2020}}
  • {{abbr|T|Top}} Licorice, Cloud9
  • {{abbr|J|Jungle}} Blaber, Cloud9
  • {{abbr|M|Mid}} Bjergsen, Team SoloMid
  • {{abbr|B|Bottom}} Zven, Cloud9
  • {{abbr|S|Support}} CoreJJ, Team Liquid

{{stack end}}

{{stack begin|float=left|margin=true}}

{{stack end}}

{{stack begin|float=left}}

{{stack end}}

{{clear}}

  • Most Valuable Player: CoreJJ, Team Liquid{{cite news |last1=Esguerra |first1=Tyler |title=CoreJJ named 2020 LCS Summer Split MVP |url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/corejj-named-2020-lcs-summer-split-mvp |access-date=October 7, 2023 |work=Dot Esports |date=September 4, 2020}}
  • Rookie of the Year: Tactical, Team Liquid{{cite news |last1=Esguerra |first1=Tyler |title=Tactical wins 2020 LCS Rookie of the Year, top 5 MVP candidates revealed|url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/tactical-wins-2020-lcs-rookie-of-the-year-top-5-mvp-candidates-revealed |access-date=October 7, 2023 |work=Dot Esports |date=August 28, 2020}}
  • Coaching Staff of the Split: Team Liquid{{cite news |last1=Esguerra |first1=Tyler |title=Team Liquid wins 2020 LCS Summer Coaching Staff of the Split award |url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/team-liquid-wins-2020-lcs-summer-coaching-staff-of-the-split-award |access-date=October 7, 2023 |work=Dot Esports |date=August 18, 2020}}

Broadcast

The English broadcast was available on the League of Legends Esports website, as well as on Twitch and YouTube. On January 20, Riot Games announced their official partnership with Chinese streaming service Huya, giving them exclusive rights to the Chinese broadcast.{{cite news |last1=Matthiesen |first1=Tom |title=League of Legends: Riot partners with Huya as exclusive platform to broadcast the LCS and LEC in China |url=https://www.invenglobal.com/articles/10211/riot-partners-with-huya-as-exclusive-platform-to-broadcast-the-lcs-and-lec-in-china |accessdate=January 20, 2020 |work=Inven Global |date=January 20, 2020 |language=en}} On April 8, it was announced that the spring playoffs would be aired on ESPN2 and the ESPN App.{{cite news |last1=Ocal |first1=Arda |title=LCS spring split playoff games to air on ESPN |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/29012471/lcs-spring-split-playoff-games-air-espn |accessdate=April 10, 2020 |work=ESPN |date=April 8, 2020 |language=en}}

For the 2020 season, the LCS implemented a revised schedule, featuring broadcasts of matches on Monday evenings called "Monday Night League" in addition to their regularly scheduled Saturday and Sunday broadcasts. In May, the league decided to discontinue Monday Night League in May 2020 due to low viewership. Instead, the league extended its broadcasts to include Friday evenings.{{cite news |last1=Webster |first1=Andrew |title=Riot’s experimental Monday night League of Legends matches move to Friday |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/20/21264124/league-of-legends-lcs-esports-friday-night-games-riot |access-date=October 15, 2023 |work=The Verge |date=May 20, 2020 |language=en}}

Notes

{{Notelist}}

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

  • [https://nexus.leagueoflegends.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2020-LCS-Rule-Set-v20.1_6bkbwz26cgp7fngeat6a.pdf 2020 Official Rules (v. 20.1) LCS and LACS]

{{League of Legends Championship Series}}

{{2020 in League of Legends competition}}

League of Legends

Category:2020 multiplayer online battle arena tournaments

Category:League Championship Series (esports) seasons

League of Legends Championship Series season, 2020