Artem Bykov, the commissioner of the League of Legends European Championship (LEC), discusses the league's recent record-breaking success in the Winter Split and its promising future in an in-depth interview.
Highlighting the impressive increase in viewership with 600,000 simultaneous viewers during the opening week and a peak of 830,000, Bykov covers topics such as the impact of the European Regional Leagues (ERLs) and co-streaming. He provides a glimpse into the internal dynamics and strategies that underpin the ongoing success of the LEC.
| Hello Artem! Could you introduce yourself and explain more about your job and role within the LEC to the fans?
Artem: "My name is Artem Bykov, I’m the commissioner for the LEC. I’ve been in this role for a year and a half. In short, my role is to be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the LEC."
| The success in terms of viewership numbers is pretty notable this split. Could you tell us more about this increase?
Artem: "Yeah for sure, the Winter Split has been fantastic for us and I can reveal now that we’ve had the highest EMEA ever in terms of viewership for an LEC split. This success has been really years in the making."
"For example, a big part of this success is the LOL Esport ecosystem in the EMEA. The combination of the amateur circuit, the ERL that we have been building for years, they really helped us to make this success happen."
"To give an example, if we look at the final weekend of the Winter Split, we have a phenomenal story of the rookies against all odds. You know, winning against Fnatic, winning against BDS and advancing to the Grand Finals, playing against G2. This story wouldn’t have been possible if we didn’t have this ecosystem where the rookies could have a clear path to pro."
"That’s something that we didn’t achieve overnight. This is something that we’ve been building for years. There are other factors of course. The new LEC format that we introduced last year played a big role. There are many other reasons and we can now say without a doubt that it was the biggest LEC split ever in terms of viewership."
| Do you think it’s good for the LEC if ERLs have a growing fanbase or are you in competition against them?
Artem: "ERLs are a little bit outside of my limits but when you look at the LOL Esport ecosystem in the EMEA, LEC and ERLs are most of the time taking the most spotlight. But our ecosystem is more than this."
"For example we work very closely with our publishing team and country manager about creating a realistic ecosystem with amateur circuits, national league… ERLs that are good for the pro players in our sport."
"I think ERLs plays a huge role in the success of our league. Again, if you take a look at our top players, they have their roots in the ERLs top teams. If we also look at the local communities and the fan bases that ERLs helped to build, this has been phenomenal as well."
"Let’s take KC as an example. They managed to use LFL as a platform for years, they built such a powerful brand and such a powerful and passionate fan base. It was only possible thanks to the ERLs and we absolutely think it was a critical piece of the success of our ecosystem."
| Since you mention Karmine Corp, how much of a role do you think they played in the increased viewership?
Artem: "There are many reasons that played a role in the success of this Winter Split and KC is one of them. There is no doubt that they brought a passionate and dedicated fan base that impressed us all."
"KC is not the only team who is contributing to this success and we are also very grateful to all of the other LEC teams who are working with their fan bases to grow the viewership of the LEC."
| Some people would argue that co-streaming is also contributing to the increase in numbers. How much do you think that is the case?
Artem: "Co-streaming played a huge role in this success. That’s why we started the trial last year and we moved very carefully and developed the programs step by step, making sure it fits very nicely in our ecosystem."
"Right now, our co-streaming trial is at the best spot as it’s ever been. We have seen fantastic viewership results. You’ve probably seen that we added the co-streaming boost at the Riot Games Arena here in Berlin. That also enabled some unique interactions on the broadcast."
"It’s not only about the viewership, if you look at the final MAD Lions KOI games, I absolutely love to see the reaction cams from Ibai. That really added to the moment and to the celebration of their LEC. We are very happy to see where our co-streaming program is right now and how it developed over the past years and it played a big role in our success."
| Do you see the rivalry between countries as a good thing for the LEC?
Artem: "Yeah absolutely. In our region, the diversity of EMEA is our strength. We have so many countries who are part of this region and we absolutely want to celebrate this rivalry. I think that the Spanish fans and the French fans really leveled up the game when it comes to the fans' interactions.
"It also sets an example for everybody else. We love seeing this and we love that this rivalry has become one of the features of our league."
| The LEC started in a revamped arena this year. How did you take advantage of this new arena?
Artem: "In many ways. Last year, the arena went through a transformation and we got a variety of upgrades that we can now use to create awesome experiences for our fans."
"To name a few, I think almost everyone who works at the studio and who enjoyed the show and the pro players and everything, received more space in the arena which we are now using in very clever ways to improve the quality of life for everybody."
"Also, to be frank, it’s just the beginning for us. We spend the Winter Split learning, seeing what other tools we have and how to use them and we are now looking forward to seeing how we can make the most out of what we have for the Spring and Summer Split. I’m really excited about what we’ve done with the arena and it’s a pleasure to go there every weekend."
| Does the LEC plan to hold more events at special locations? The LFL now holds more Roadshows than the LEC with the LFL Days
Artem: "Currently we don't plan to add new shows to the LEC. With the climate for our industry, we need to be realistic with what we can achieve. Sustainability is the number one priority for the LEC right now and with that, we currently don’t plan to add additional shows."
| You mentioned that we are only at the beginning of the success of the LEC. Recently, you also announced a 3-year partnership with KIA, proving a long-term vision. What advantages do you get from finding partners such as KIA?
Artem: "The majority of the partnerships that we announced this year are multi-year. For us, this is a true testament that the partners trust the LEC. KIA, LG, and Kit-Kat are already associated with our league."
"This year, we added Uber Eats and I think that this is a brand that would resonate greatly with our fans and community so I’m very happy with the partnerships that we managed to secure."
| Talking about partners, why did you increase the minimum age to participate in LEC?
Artem: "Before we made this change, we evaluated very closely what the needs of our teams are, what has been the age history of the players that played in the LEC, and in the current economic environment, it is critical for us to enable opportunities for the team."
"By raising the age limit, we enabled new revenue possibilities for the teams, an opportunity to secure new sponsorships which is very important for them."
"When it comes to sustainability for the teams, it is one of the ways we support the teams. We are looking for ways to help the teams and don’t take those decisions lightly. We want to make sure that they don’t complicate the path for pro players, that’s why in ERLs the age limit is still 16."
"We are making those steps very carefully and we are making sure that those changes would only have positive effects on our ecosystem."
| Does the LEC do anything to improve the level of the teams of our region to find more international success?
Artem: "We always think about this. I love seeing our teams play at Worlds. This is the time when I can be unbiased and show my fandom for the teams. We always try to find a way to help the teams and to be frank, there are limited ways."
"We look for them all the time. We changed the format to try to help them by increasing their months of best official matches. We gave the teams more opportunity to practice this game so they can play on the international arena."
"This year in particular we changed the calendar a little bit so the teams would have a bigger break before going to the MSI. We look at the ways to support the teams and react upon those. We always put that on the table, how can we help our teams to perform on the international stage."
| Regarding the format that was introduced last year and the fact that we have three splits, do you see it as a success? Having three finals per year before the split final makes each of them less important.
Artem: "I think the results of the format experimentation have been fantastic, we love it. We think it brought the excitement in the league to a new level. Of course when you look at the previous format, when we only have two splits a year, we have fewer final shows and it makes them more exclusive."
"We think that this trade-off is definitely worth making. So if you look at the Winter Split final, our team tried to use everything to make it special and I think we did a really good job."
| How did the layoffs in the LEC affect you and the organization of the competition?
Artem: "The layoffs definitely affected us and it was a difficult time to go through. The impact of the LEC layoffs was reported on social media and, right now, we are already at the spot where we try to provide a show that is up to our fans. The success of this Winter Split is also thanks to our former colleagues."
| Would you have any words for the LEC fans?
Artem: "Thank you very much for following the LEC and showing your passion and love for the game, our teams, our league. We are looking forward to breaking other records and to propose more incredible things for the rest of the year."
