The Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS) is making a grand comeback with several significant changes! The 2024 season is about to kick off, and here's all the essential information to stay in the game.
Registration for regional events will begin on January 17. Head over to the RLCS 2024 Season page to register your team and get ready for the competition.
It's important to note that the team composition deadline for the first regional event of the season is set for January 22.
For this season, the RLCS format has undergone a major overhaul: the aim is to strengthen open competition, focus on long-term sustainability, and increase rewards for a greater number of players. This year, there will be three in-person events:
- RLCS Major 1
- RLCS Major 2
- Rocket League World Championship
Each RLCS Major will have three open online qualification tournaments in each region. These qualifications will follow a standardized format throughout the year to simplify the process for both newcomers and seasoned players.
- An open double-elimination bracket to determine the top 16 teams in each region.
- A 16-team Swiss system to determine the top 8 teams in each region.
- An 8-team single-elimination bracket to establish the standings in each region.
At the end of each qualification stage, RLCS points will be awarded to the top teams. After the third qualification stage, the teams leading the regional standings will be invited to participate in the Major.
Qualified Teams for Majors by Region:
- North America (NA): Top four teams
- Europe (EU): Top four teams
- Middle East & North Africa (MENA): Top two teams
- Oceania (OCE): Top two teams
- South America (SAM): Top two teams
- Asia-Pacific (APAC): Top team
- Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA): Top team
The Majors will use the same format as the Open Qualifiers but with international stakes and additional RLCS points at stake on the road to the Rocket League World Championship:
- A 16-team Swiss system to determine the top 8 teams.
- An 8-team single-elimination bracket to crown an RLCS Major Champion.
After RLCS Major 2 concludes, the top teams that have accumulated the most RLCS points throughout the entire 2024 season in each region will be invited to the Rocket League World Championship.
Prize distribution has also been expanded to regional qualification phases. The top 128 teams in NA and EU, the top 64 teams in SAM, OCE, and MENA, as well as the top 32 teams in APAC and SSA, will receive rewards.
However, something is quite surprising: the prize pool has decreased for this year. Dropping to $4,300,000, it is even lower than that of Season X, as shown below:
Rocket League seems to be one of the few games affected by this prize pool decrease. On the League of Legends side, the LEC Winter 2024 prize pool is slightly higher than last year's: $87,408 will be shared among the players instead of $84,992.
Another game to increase its prize pool, and quite impressively so, is Fortnite. The FNCS 2024 has gone all out. Last year, $4,000,000 was distributed among the winners, and this year, it will be $10 million.
For some time now, Epic Games has been trying to make Rocket League profitable. After a price hike in the store and the end of trades, this decline in prize pool has been rather poorly received by fans. Many believe that it will hinder the development of the competitive Rocket League scene in the years to come.
The 2024 season also sees a major change in its rules, notably lowering the minimum age of participation to 13 years. Parents or legal guardians will need to provide consent and accompany minors to in-person events.
