Riot has had a tough decision to make for a long time. It was brought to the forefront when H2K wrote their first and second letters to Riot threatening the destruction of their team if changes weren’t made to the EU LCS. Though Riot was largely quiet about H2K, it represented a financial instability that had slowly been spreading across the EU LCS. While many of the EU teams seemed far better off than H2K – and none of them rallied to H2K’s call to arms – when Fnatic and G2 applied for slots in the NA LCS, it was as big an indication as there was that something was wrong.

Riot’s problem was that to change the EU model meant to change what many fans loved about it. Europe has always been big on relegation and challengers. But while this system has worked for years in other sports, League of Legends was facing a financial bleed that had to be stopped. In many years, perhaps it would start to be profitable, but until then, EU teams were falling apart and the cost was growing higher.

Riot’s final decision was a half-measure. They took out the mid-season relegation but kept it annually. The Challenger series has also been dismantled and replaced with an international tournament twice a year that will fight for entry into the EU LCS. Conceptually, Riot will allow teams to have better investment opportunities while trying to grow the international scene, but what it means for fans are fewer games and fewer chances for relegation.

All anyone has to do is look to the comments of the announcement to see that most fans are focusing only on the idea that they will be losing games and relegation, which for many fans means a less competitive environment, and this is the double-edged sword Riot has been juggling

To fix the teams and players financially, they need to change the EU LCS. To change the EU LCS means to enrage fans. Without fans, the teams lose money, and with money, the teams fall apart. It is essentially choosing the lesser of two evils. And while some fans believed H2K had it right – that Riot should just pour more money into the EU LCS – Riot is doing that too. It was announced that in addition to the changes coming to the EU LCS, they would increase their contributions to teams. However, Riot has been running the LCS at a loss for years, and in the much bigger picture, they have to find a way to start generating revenue or the whole system collapses.

Fans can be angry – and they will be, there’s no doubt of that – but the decision comes down to how best to stabilize and grow something ready to fall down. The passion is there – Fnatic and Misfits showed that at Worlds – but Riot has to play a dangerous game to keep that passion alive. Financially, this looks like the best call, but we’ll have to wait and see if the fans stick around.