Get ready to see the Summoner’s Cup in a Louis Vuitton Case

As a pioneer of the eSports industry, Riot Games struck a surprising deal with the fashion giant Louis Vuitton. The news came weeks before Riot Games started gathering the world's best players on October 2nd for the League of Legends World Championship. The Play-in and group stage will start on October 2nd in Berlin. Following the group eliminations, the tournament will head to Madrid for semi-finals on October 26, before closing the championship with the finals in Paris on November 10. 

Get ready to see the Summoner’s Cup in a Louis Vuitton Case

Louis Vuitton will design a one-of-a-kind Trophy Travel Case to hold the Summoner’s Cup throughout the tournament. The case will have a design inspired by the game’s deep lore mixed with Louis Vuitton's classic roots. In addition to the case, french luxury fashion house’s Artistic Director of Women’s Collections, Nicolas Ghesquiere, will design several unique champion skins as well as a capsule collection that will be announced during the World Championship. You can see the statements below from Naz Aletaha, Head of Global eSports at Riot Games and Michael Burke, Chairman, and CEO of Louis Vuitton regarding the partnership.

“We are honoured to have Louis Vuitton as an official partner with designs to impact the look, feel, and prestige of our most prominent League of Legends event. This is a historic partnership that speaks to the impact Riot Games and League of Legends has had on the industry over the past nine esports seasons. We welcome the LV brand to our sport and we are eager to share the entire scope of the partnership in the months ahead, in particular on November 10 when the Summoner’s Cup is awarded in Paris.” – Naz Aletaha, Head of Global eSports at Riot Games.

“The League of Legends World Championship is not only the climax of the tournament: it’s where the world of sports and entertainment come together in celebration of new legends to be born. Louis Vuitton has long been associated with the world’s most coveted trophies, and here we are today, alongside the Summoner’s Cup. We are thrilled t be part of such an iconic event.” – Michael Burke, Chairman, and CEO of Louis Vuitton.

The monumental partnership does not mark the first time a game with popular eSports scene introduced special in-game skins for their partnership. Earlier last year, Capcom announced new skins for Street Fighter 5 that would include several brands on them like regular sports jerseys. Unlike seeing a brand like Redbull, who has big impact on the eSports sponsorship industry, seeing Louis Vuitton is really surprising, to say the least. Even though the partnership is really refreshing, I am worried that there will be a disconnection between the player base and the brand. Because League of Legends is mostly played by broke college students around the age of 18-24 who can’t afford luxury fashion bags. Let’s just hope this whole partnership doesn’t look like DJ Khaled on the stage of Overwatch League.

League of Legends Game Event Video