Riot built a respectable IP and stable ESport scene, other minor ESport scenes completely dissolved (HotS) while Major Esport scenes (Dota 2) had to resort to introducing Gambling ads and Saudi Arabia sponsorships amidst steady declining viewership just to stay afloat.
Meanwhile League’s ESport is still going strong and continues breaking worldwide viewership records. Sure there was the whole NEOM debacle with the LEC but the end result was Riot walking out of the deal and thats what matters.
So Riot Games have my utmost respect for how they managed their ESport scene despite all the troubles and challenges without relying on easy but immoral investors and sponsors.
I wasn’t really a Dota fan but I tuned in last year’s TI and the amount of GG bets pop ups + the terrible production really turned me off and made me appreciate Riot Games.
This Year’s TI’s production is better so at least they aren’t continuing the downward trend but the viewership just like OP said is declining compared to previous years. I rather Riot Games manage LoL and esports over Valve or God forbid Blizzard lmao