North America League Championship Series Summer Finals 2017

League of Legends has the most premier esports scene in the world. The North American League Championship Series (NA LCS) is the North American League of Legends esports scene. Teams of gamers compete to prove who is the best in the nation. The NA LCS Summer Finals is the conclusion to the North American esports season. After competing for a spot in the gauntlet all split, the top 6 teams compete in a tournament concluding in the summer finals. The top two teams play for a multimillion dollar prize pool and a spot at the World Championship.

Each year the NA LCS Finals takes place in a different city. For 2017, the venue was TD Garden in Boston. The stadium could hold ~14,000 people. During the event, Riot takes over the building, transforming it into a wonderland for LCS fans. There are cosplayers (costumed performers), photo ops, special League-Themed menu items, free swag, exclusive merch sales, and meet and greets with pro players, famous online personalities, and our casters (the announcer team). The goal is to thrill the fans and give them an experience past what they could watch online.

Event Videos

Photos

TD Garden before setup begins

TD Garden space during rehersals after setup is complete

TD Garden shortly before games start on Finals day

Fans in the stands during the 3rd place match

Volunteer cosplayer entertainers on stage before doors open

Trophy display on concourse showcasing the two competing finalists next to the trophy and the trophies of past winners

Event Art

The event art

Pro players drawn as game champions drawn contracted from a fan creator and used during the event for backdrops, posters, and hype art.

Backsplash done for one of the teams playing that weekend. Each team competing had one designed. These were used as photo backdrops for the teams in the meet the pros experience.

Fan Reactions to Fan Activations

Social & Press

Riot Official:

Riot-Published Esports Event Articles

Riot-Published Esports Tournament Articles/Videos

Summer Finals Press

    Dot Esports article on location announcement

    Slingshot Esports article on location announcement

Summer Finals Fan Reactions

    Fan praise on Reddit for Riot's handling of ticketing problems

    Fan reaction to Gordon Hayward on the analyst desk

    Fan reaction to his time at the event

Photos courtesy of Riot Games, TD Garden, and Parker Nguyen.