It’s now just days before the Rocket League Championship Series (“RLCS”) finals for both North America and Europe and there’s an added incentive for teams to perform well. The RLCS has announced that the top two teams from NA and EU will both automatically qualify for next season’s league play. Additionally, the world champion will also qualify for next season.
The statement on the RLCS website reads: “As the RLCS continues to grow with each season, we are constantly looking for ways to evolve and create a more sustainable environment for our players. We believe this is the first of many steps in doing just that. In the coming months we’ll have more information to share on changes to come in RLCS Season 4,”
It continues: “For now, we’re all looking toward Regionals to see who will break through and claim their team’s spot in the World Championship and Season 4”.
Further information was provided in a Reddit thread revealing further changes to the Rocket League esports system. Teams that automatically qualify will be required to keep two thirds of their Season 3 starters for Season 4. It additionally reveals that rosters will be reduced from five members to four. Should a team not adhere to the rules they will automatically forfeit their qualification spot leaving another team to be sourced from the RLCS Qualifier.
It was further disclosed that a team would not lose its spot should it just change orgs. It defines rosters by players included so were a team to switch organisation but keep the same players, they would retain their automatic slot.
There’s also several calls on the thread from fans and the community to have a second division, or minor league implemented to help build a sustainable esports ecosystem. It remains to be seen whether or not a minor league system is in the pipeline for the exciting esport.
Esports Insider says: It’s great to see the RLCS making moves to try and ensure the stability and sustainability of its flagship esports tournament. Should the scene wish to grow, incorporating roster locks and automatic qualification is clearly a step in the right direction. The finals get underway very shortly and then it’s onto worlds in June. There’s even more incentive now for teams to perform well.