Riot Games has revealed the standings for the top League of Legends teams in 2024. Surprisingly, leading the pack is Chinese team Bilibili Gaming (BLG), who finished runner-up to T1 at Worlds. The announcement drew mixed reactions from fans and experts, especially considering that T1 won Worlds 2024, the most prestigious tournament in competitive gaming.
However, Riot's scoring system values teams' annual performance across a wide variety of competitions. Riot's evaluation model is based on consistent performance throughout the year, which explains how BLG managed to stay ahead of T1.
Although the Korean team triumphed at Worlds, their fluctuations in other competitions caused them to lose valuable points, while BLG maintained a solid trajectory and accumulated enough points to take first place.
Riot Games' criteria for League of Legends rankings
To better understand the rankings, it's important to consider how Riot Games defines the concept of "best team." The system isn't based solely on one-off victories, but also on factors such as consistency, performance in regional championships, and the performance of opponents. Therefore, a team that demonstrates consistency and faces strong opponents throughout the year can indeed achieve a higher position than a team with a single major victory.
BLG's trajectory throughout 2024 serves as an example of this logic. The team won the first and second regional splits and reached the finals of both the MSI and Worlds, earning a significant number of points. Conversely, T1 struggled to maintain the same level of performance in the regional championships and the MSI, where they finished third, and in one of the splits, where they finished fourth. These results impacted their overall score, leaving them just behind BLG in the final rankings.
The importance of the “Opponent Strength” criterion
Another important aspect of Riot Games' ranking system is the criterion called "Opponent Strength." It assigns value to matches against high-level opponents and a team's progress in challenging competitions. T1, despite winning Worlds, underperformed in some key matches. The team faced challenges that reduced its score throughout the year.
On the other hand, BLG maintained a consistent record, facing and defeating high-caliber opponents. Their trajectory included finals in international and regional competitions, which accumulated points and strengthened their position in the rankings. Thus, even after losing to T1 in the Worlds final, BLG consolidated their lead, standing out for their consistent performance.
The conclusion of Worlds 2024 also brought significant changes to other teams in Riot Games' global rankings. GAM, representing the VCS region, saw the biggest rise, rising from 37th to 28th place. FlyQuest, from the North American League (LCS), jumped from 16th to 10th place, highlighting the North American team's potential. T1, with its world title win, advanced from 6th to 2nd place, thus establishing itself as one of the strongest forces in the competitive scene, even though it still trailed BLG.
paiN Gaming in the top 50
Nationally, paiN Gaming represents Brazil among the top 50 global teams, thus ending the year as the country's highest-ranked team. The Brazilian team has achieved a prominent position, solidifying the national scene and bringing hope to local fans. This achievement highlights the evolution of Brazilian League of Legends, which, in recent years, has proven itself competitive in international tournaments, increasing the popularity and quality of eSports competitions in the country.
Check out Riot Games' top 10
- Bilibili Gaming Dreamsmart (LPL) — 1,641 pts
- T1 (LCK) — 1,619 pts
- Gen.G (LCK) — 1,607 pts
- Hanwha Life Esports (LCK) — 1,564 pts
- TOP Esports (LPL) — 1,509 pts
- G2 Esports (LEC) — 1,472 pts
- Beijing JDG Intel Esports (LPL) — 1,440 pts
- Weibo Gaming TapTap (LPL) — 1,436 pts
- Dplus Kia (LCK) — 1,427 pts
- FlyQuest (LCS) — 1,420 pts