LoL: “Two series in 27 days is crazy shit,” Noah on the LEC format

If GX lose to BDS, they will have played five series in Summer

GIANTX’s botlaner, Oh “Noah” Hyeon-taek, didn’t mince words on Monday, when he vented his frustration over the LEC's Summer Split format of 2025. “We wait 17 days to play one series, then need to wait 10 days to play another," he wrote on X. "Only two series in 27 days is crazy shit, while LCK and LPL are playing 2 series a week xd.” For Noah, the LEC’s current format just doesn’t let the action breathe.

If GIANTX loses in their cross-play decider to Team BDS, they will have played only five series through the entire Summer split. Fnatic’s case is even more striking: their last game was on August 17th, and their next will only be on September 8th — a 21-day break in the middle of the season. Competition thrives on rhythm and momentum. Such long pauses disrupt what makes the sport compelling.

A calendar that breaks itself

When Riot announced the new three-split system, it was billed as an innovation, allowing more storylines, varied formats, better alignment with international play. In practice, however, each split has revealed cracks:

Winter Split leans on Bo1s to get through the calendar quickly, but Bo1s often feel shallow and unrepresentative of true team strength. Especially at the beginning of the year.
The Spring Split returned to its classic format and introduced BO3 directly since the regular season, as well as two roadshows to reconnect with the audience. However, with only six teams accessing the playoffs after only nine series played, many squads stopped playing quite early.
Summer Split, the most important with Worlds slots on the line, has been criticized for its long gaps, the schedule not being even for all teams, and an overall lack of games played to qualify.

Also, since the LEC shifted to three splits per year, the number of games per team has dropped, especially for those who don’t make it past the regular season. For bottom-table squads, an entire split can be over in just a handful of series. André "Guilhoto" Guilhoto, GIANTX'x Head Coach, highlighted the number of games played by all leagues during the Summer Split. Although not all situations are comparable, this highlights that the different formats tested across all major leagues are also not equal from a competitive standpoint. In fact, European teams play fewer games during the Summer Split.

The LEC has tried to innovate, but in chasing novelty, it could have lost sight of consistency. Fans need predictable scheduling. Players need steady competition. And the league itself seems to need a format that builds storylines over time instead of tearing them apart. Noah’s frustration appears like a warning. Unless the LEC balances its calendar and ensures equal competitive opportunities, the league risks becoming less of a stage for Europe’s best and more of a stop-start sideshow to the global calendar.

Michal Konkol/Riot Games