NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES –  The BIG EAST and Riot Games, the creator of League of Legends, today announced a partnership to launch the spring 2019 BIG EAST League of Legends championship. Seven of the BIG EAST Conference’s 10 schools will participate in the competition, which features the most played PC video game in the world.
 
The participating teams include: Butler, DePaul, Marquette, Providence, St. John’s, Seton Hall and Villanova. Following a regular-season, which will start in January 2019, the top four teams will compete for the BIG EAST League of Legends championship title with the winner and runner-up earning berths to the League of Legends College Championship Play-in, with a chance to reach the League of Legends College Championship.
 
“As the BIG EAST enters its second year of competitive esports, we are very excited to further our involvement with Riot Games and our League of Legends competition ,” said Vince Nicastro, deputy commissioner and chief operating officer of the BIG EAST Conference. “Interest in esports on our campuses continues to grow and we are proud to be able to provide the opportunity for Big East students to compete on the national stage.”
 
"We have continually been impressed by the BIG EAST's forward-looking approach for how esports can support their membership since we first talked with them in 2016," said Michael Sherman, college esports lead at Riot Games. "This partnership is a huge step forward for College League of Legends and sets a new precedent for support from a Division I conference."
 
In March 2018, the BIG EAST launched an esports pilot program, partnering with ESL, the world’s largest independent esports company. BIG EAST participating schools competed in two titles, League of Legends and Rocket League® by Psyonix, culminating with the BIG EAST Esports Invitational Powered by ESL in April 2018.
 
For more on the BIG EAST and esports, visit www.BIGEAST.com/esports.
  
About BIG EAST
The BIG EAST Conference is an association of ten nationally prominent colleges and universities that foster healthy athletic competition, community service and the pursuit of excellence in academic environments.  The athletic programs of BIG EAST institutions provide national-caliber participation opportunities for more than 3,727 student-athletes on over 180 men’s and women’s teams in 22 sports.  Established in 1979 and headquartered in New York City, the BIG EAST’s members are located in seven of the country’s top 35 largest media markets and include Butler University, Creighton University, DePaul University, Georgetown University, Marquette University, Providence College, St. John’s University, Seton Hall University, Villanova University and Xavier University.  For more information, visit www.bigeast.com.
 
About Riot Games
Riot Games was founded in 2006 by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill with the intent to change the way video games are made and supported for players. In 2009, Riot released its debut title League of Legends to worldwide acclaim. The game has since gone on to become the most played PC game in the world and a key driver of the explosive growth of esports. Players are the foundation of our community and it’s for them we continue to evolve and improve the League of Legends experience. Riot Games is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA and has 23 offices worldwide.