Riot Games entered a ten-million-dollar sponsorship deal with FTX back in August 2021. Now, they are looking to get themselves out of that very same League of Legends (LoL) Championship Series partnership.
Molly White, a crypto critic and creator of Web3 Is Going Just Great, reported that this deal was supposed to go on for 7 years until 2028, in which FTX would pay “substantial amounts” to Riot.
Riot Games just filed a motion in the FTX bankruptcy case to end their deal, pertaining to the League of Legends Championship series.
FTX still owes $6.25M (about half the payment) for 2022, and will owe $12.875M for 2023. Per the agreement, the payments escalate through 2028.
— Molly White (@molly0xFFF) December 17, 2022
Yet, FTX still owes half of the $12.5 million that they needed to pay for the 2022 calendar year. In 2023, FTX would owe Riot Games another $12.875 million, with the first payment due on January 2nd next year for the first quarter. Notably, these amounts were not known at the time of signing.
FTX’s bankruptcy is not just the only reason cited, as Riot states that there is damage to the brand’s reputation as a result of association alone. In a humorous twist, Riot reasons that the ex-CEO was not only notorious among investors for playing LoL during business meetings, but his in-game performance, like his recent performance as CEO, leaves a lot to be desired while being “the subject of online commentary.”
Alongside these, Riot Games reportedly could not find another crypto sponsor while the contract is still in place as Riot said that they are “prevented from commercializing the crypto-exchange sponsorship category”.
To note, TSM and Furia, two other esports organizations, have already voided their partnerships with FTX last month.
