Each annual season of competition was divided into two splits, spring and summer, which concluded with a double-elimination tournament between the top teams.

At the end of the season, the winner, runners-up and third-place team of the summer playoffs qualified for the annual League of Legends World Championship.

However, in 2011, professional organized league play became a prominent point of emphasis for Riot after the company hosted its inaugural championship tournament at DreamHack.

The league was established with the purpose of serving as a platform for developing talent and providing an opportunity for Challenger-level teams to participate in the LCS via a promotion and relegation system.

Notably, the GoodGame Agency held ownership of both Europe's Alliance and North America's Evil Geniuses while simultaneously managing sponsorships for both teams.

[13] In June 2017, Riot Games announced that the NA LCS would shift from a promotion and relegation system to franchised league with ten permanent teams beginning in 2018.

Each of the ten teams would have guaranteed spots, which would encourage owners to make substantial investments, including the creation of training facilities and improvements in coaching, scouting, and player well-being.

Riot Games also raised the minimum salary for players to US$75,000, with an average annual income for League pros around $150,000.

Following the EU LCS's transition to LEC, all major regions in the competitive world of League of Legends had a unique name, logo, and brand identities.

In June, the parent company of Dignitas announced that they had partnered with the Houston Rockets to acquire Clutch Gaming for reportedly over $30 million, marking the first-ever merger involving a League of Legends franchise in the LCS.

[19] In May, Riot Games issued a 60-day ultimatum to Echo Fox, demanding the removal of co-founder and shareholder Amit Raizada from their cap table.

After a failed attempt to sell the franchise to Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Echo Fox agreed to allow Riot Games to handle the sale process.

[23] In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, LCS commissioner Chris Greeley announced the suspension of the 2020 season on March 13, 2020, with no definite timeframe for resumption.

[30] In the 2023 season, another franchise sale took place when NRG Esports acquired Counter Logic Gaming, assuming control of its LCS slot.

In response, the LCSPA threatened a player walkout to support affected individuals, viewing Riot's decision as unprecedented and contradictory to earlier assurances.

A deal was reached on June 8, establishing a new NACL business model with a 50/50 revenue split, governance improvements, minimum player notice and severance requirements, and healthcare insurance reinforcement.

[35] In addition, on November 19, 2023, Golden Guardians and Evil Geniuses exited the LCS, as their third-party administrator agreement with Riot Games was terminated.

[37][38] In its final year, the LCS featured eight North American teams who competed in two seasonal splits, spring and summer.

†  Denotes a team that is no longer in League of Legends The LCS primarily connected with its audience through online streaming via dedicated channels on platforms such as Twitch and YouTube.

[40] While regular season viewership on Twitch approached nearly 300,000 peak viewers in 2014 at times,[41] recent years leading up to 2023 saw a consistent decline.

[43] In December 2016, Riot announced that it had reached a deal with BAMTech (a spin-off of MLB Advanced Media) to serve as the exclusive distributor of LCS broadcasts through 2023.

As a substitute, Riot entered into an agreement to non-exclusively carry its broadcasts on ESPN+ instead, in addition to existing outlets such as Twitch.