Sources: University of Barcelona joins the Spanish league for 2026

Only one spot remains to complete the puzzle of LES 2026 (Liga Española de League of Legends). Sources tell Sheep Esports that the University of Barcelona (UB) is joining the league, following our previous report on LUA Gaming staying in the Spanish first division. The Spanish media outlet Konea TV was the first to report the news of the University of Barcelona joining the LES.

That makes seven out of eight teams locked in, with Barça eSports, UCAM Esports, Los Heretics, LUA, GIANTX iTero, and Movistar KOI Fénix already confirmed. As of January 26, the league’s schedule and format have yet to be announced, while several Tier 1 and ERL competitions are already underway. In an AMA, LastLap explained that, due to the rush to start the league, they plan to organize a first, quick format in mid-February.

For 2026, the Spanish league cut its teams from ten to eight, lowering costs and creating a more selective ecosystem, with all locked teams having played in last year’s SuperLiga except UB. After the previous organizer, LVP, stepped back, several candidates, including GGTech Entertainment and LastLap, competed for the rights, with LastLap ultimately securing them in mid-November, supported by major Spanish ERL teams who gave positive feedback and actively advocated for them.

This will mark the second university team in the Spanish league, alongside UCAM, which is affiliated with the University of Murcia. The University of Barcelona had already entered the Spanish League of Legends scene in 2024 by supporting the amateur ecosystem through UB Alma Mater, a project developed with Omashu, a startup incubated at the university.

UB Alma Mater was an amateur tournament in which different faculties of the university competed against each other. The teams were inclusive, and in some cases smaller faculties—or those without enough players—joined forces with others. The matches were played in person at the university’s own facilities and broadcast on Twitch in Catalan.

“After nearly 575 years of history, the UB, our Alma Mater, is innovating. It is therefore only natural that it now seeks to invest in esports and thereby strengthen its ties with its students,” said Joan Guàrdia, Rector of the UB, at the time.

Mercè Segarra, Vice-Rector for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Knowledge Transfer, for her part, emphasized the values embodied by UB Alma Mater, a special project of the university: “UB Alma Mater is an initiative that aligns with the university’s values, as it is committed to gender equality, promotes the Catalan language in the field of e-sports, and seeks to ensure players’ well-being.”