The previously reported merger between Vitality.Bee and Team BDS Academy for the LFL has now been blocked by Riot Games after a final review, sources tell Sheep Esports. Both organizations had previously reached an agreement in order to share one common academy in the ERLs. The benefit of this cooperation would lie in the academy using resources from both organizations.

Despite initial green lights from both Webedia (the league operator) and Riot's local team, the ultimate validation did not come through from the publisher for "competitive integrity" reasons, leaving the French League of Legends ecosystem in a state of uncertainty.

The merger was initially proposed by Team Vitality, who had reached out to other organizations to explore potential collaborations. However, Riot’s disapproval means that Vitality.Bee will retain their spot in the league, likely too late now to finalize a merger with another team. Still, this setback won’t significantly impact Vitality’s plans for their academy roster, as they are set to continue competing in the LFL next year.

LFL's future uncertain

The LFL may have never been as unstable since its inception in 2018. While Gentle Mates, GameWard, and IziDream have announced their departure from League of Legends, seeing two LEC team academy institutions trying to join forces to benefit from each other's resources attests to the complex economic context surrounding the ERLs.

Team BDS Academy will therefore likely not be part of the LFL in 2026. As a reminder, the team had a rookie-focused project that "struggled" throughout the year, finishing last twice and ninth once. They then lost in the "Up&Down" tournament against Esprit Shonen (2-3) and were thus automatically relegated to LFL Division 2, unless the latter decides to dissolve its academy. The organization had also announced a rebranding at the end of June to be implemented by the end of the year. Sheep Esports can confirm that it is still under work.

Riot Games was contacted by Sheep Esports ahead of this report’s publication but declined to provide a comment