The League Championship Series (LCS) Academy and Amateur Circuit 2022 Summer Split will see three broadcast additions, as well as follow a format and schedule similar to those used in Spring, Riot Games announced Thursday.
From broadcast announcements to format and scheduling details, here's a breakdown of Riot Games' 2022 Summer Split Academy and Proving Grounds update.
2022 Summer LCS Academy and Amateur Broadcasts
Riot announced three new additions coming to its LCS Academy and Amateur broadcasts for the Summer season.
One is that Riot has welcomed Esports Engine as the official broadcast partner for the Academy and Amateur Summer action.
Secondly, all Academy and Amateur matches will continue to stream exclusively on Twitch. In addition to the primary Academy Twitch channel, Riot has launched a new alternate channel, PathToLCS, where fans will find more Academy and Proving Grounds action.
Lastly, for creators looking to bring the 5v5 action to their communities on match days, Riot announced that Watch Parties are now available for Academy and Proving Grounds.
Interested co-streamers can review the Academy and Proving Grounds Watch Party Program's complete guidelines and apply for it through Riot's Google Form.
Here is an overview of the official LCS Academy and Proving Grounds co-streaming guidelines for 2022:
- Co-streamers must be located in North America
- Co-streamers and their guests must be 18+ years of age
- Co-streaming is only available in English
- Co-streaming is only available on Twitch and YouTube
- Co-streamers are responsible for ensuring that any accompanied chat is adequately moderated
- Co-streamers must respect the Prohibited Sponsor and Advertiser List
- Co-streaming must comply with Riot Games Legal Jibber Jabber and the terms of service on your respective streaming platform
2022 Summer LCS Academy Format and Schedule
The Academy Summer Split will run from June 8 to July 29, and its format remains the same as Spring Split: a double round-robin with best-of-two matches.
The schedule has been consolidated into seven weeks (down from eight in Spring), with a break between Weeks 4 and 5.
Four weeks of Academy will have matches scheduled from Wednesday through Friday, with the matches during the remaining three weeks on Wednesdays and Thursdays only. All matchday broadcasts begin at 4 p.m. ET.
All 10 Academy teams automatically advance to Proving Grounds Summer, with the bottom four teams seeded into Play In matches against the bottom four Amateur seeds.
2022 Summer Proving Grounds Circuit Events Format and Schedule
Like Spring, Proving Grounds Circuit Events will run adjacent to the Academy Summer Split, from May 23 to Aug. 2.
In the Main Stage, beginning May 30, teams will be sorted into four GSL groups, with the top two teams from each group moving on to a single-elimination bracket. All teams that play in Circuit Events will earn Proving Grounds Circuit Points. At the end of two Circuit Events, the 10 teams with the most Circuit Points will be seeded into the Proving Grounds bracket with the 10 Academy teams.
All Proving Grounds Circuit Events will take place on Mondays and Tuesdays, with the broadcasts beginning at 6 p.m. ET each day.
2022 Summer Proving Grounds Format and Schedule
Proving Grounds Summer will run from Aug 3 to Aug 31. The capstone event of Summer Academy and Amateur competition, Proving Grounds Summer is a 20-team, double-elimination bracket that pits all 10 Academy teams against the top 10 points holders from the Amateur Proving Grounds Circuit Events.
The bottom four Academy seeds will face the bottom four Amateur seeds in four single-elimination, best-of-three Play In matches to enter the main bracket.
The final four teams will play their remaining matches on LAN at the LCS Studio, where a Proving Grounds Summer Champion will be crowned.
While the double-elimination bracket-style tournament format has not changed, Riot said that it heard the community feedback around seeding, and has adjusted it to "better reflect the relative strength of Academy teams versus Amateur."
More information on the full schedules for the LCS Academy 2022 Summer Split, LCS Amateur Circuit and Proving Grounds tournament can be found on Riot's website.
