Shopify
Shopify is making a big investment in franchised esports, buying the slot in League of Legends’ North American circuit currently held by TSM. Canada-based Shopify launched an in-house competitive gaming team, Shopify Rebellion, in 2021, as company co-founder and CEO Tobias "Tobi" Lütke has long been an esports fan. Sources tell SBJ that TSM has been looking to offload its franchise slot in Riot Games’ LCS circuit since June. Terms of the deal were not available at press time. Shopify Rebellion also plays competitively in Starcraft II, Rocket League, Valorant, and others.
However, this may not be the end of League of Legends for North American Esports organization TSM as sources tell SBJ they may be looking to acquire another League of Legends team based in Asia to participate in League of Legends Champions Korea or League of Legends Pro League (China).
Shopify also made another move, piggybacking off their LCS announcment, revealing that they have partnered with Moist Esports to run a Valorant team as part of a joint effort.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
