Riot Games Prohibits TSM From Using New FTX Sponsor in League of Legends, Valorant Events
By Samuel Purdy
Following the major news of TSM's $210 million naming rights deal with crypto exchange FTX, Riot Games announced that TSM with not be able to use their new sponsor in their name or their jerseys for League of Legends and Valorant esports events.
.@TSM will NOT be allowed to use "FTX" in its name or on its jerseys for the #LCS, @ValorantEsports, or any Riot-sanctioned events, Riot told @DotEsports.
— Jacob Wolf (@JacobWolf) June 4, 2021
That exception was carved out in the TSM-FTX deal, but not communicated to press.https://t.co/CsLwtzKGLU
The announcement came from Riot Games head of esports for North America and Oceania Chris Greeley, telling Dot Esports the cryptocurrency sponsorship does not violate LCS regulations, but it does go against Riot Games' restrictions about cryptocurrency partnerships.
In addition, a TSM spokesperson told Dot Esports that both TSM and FTX knew of the exceptions to League of Legends and Valorant when agreeing to the sponsorship deal, but the announcement from TSM and FTX did not mention the prohibition in League of Legends and Valorant. In response to a Reddit post, TSM owner and CEO Andy Dinh noted the carving out for official Riot Games events, but that, "FTX will still be sponsoring our league and Valorant players in content, social, live-streaming and in-person events."
The $210 million sponsorship deal is among the largest ever in esports history, and fans and analysts across the esports industry have noted what a milestone this deal could present for the history of esports, and how both esports and crypto may continue to work and grow together going forward. Another recent milestone for the esports industry comes from music industry titan Spotify announcing their development of a League of legends esports-dedicated podcast for their platform.