Riot Games bans esports team TSM from using new name after crypto deal

By Andrew Zucosky Published June 4, 2021

Esports team SoloMid, also known as TSM, signed a $210 million dollar deal today with FTX, a cryptocurrency company, for the right to change the team’s name. With this deal, TSM will now be known as “TSM FTX,” with FTX’s branding on the team’s jerseys and the team’s social media accounts.

However, FTX’s branding will not be displayed on the League of Legends and Valorant teams per Riot Games’ strict rules on cryptocurrency and sponsorships.

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TSM is currently considered one of the top competitive esports companies in the world, with active teams in the majority of esports scenes such as League of Legends, Fortnite, and Rainbow Six Siege.

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The deal between the Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency company and TSM ensures that the esports team will be paid $210 million over the course of 10 years in exchange for FTX changing the team’s name to “TSM FTX.” The last time TSM had a similar deal, Qualcomm renamed the team to “TSM Snapdragon” in 2013.

This deal does not change the branding for the TSM teams that are playing in the LCS (League Championship Series) for League of Legends or for competitive Valorant. Riot Games, the developer of these games, has strict rules on what sponsorships esports teams are allowed to take. It does not condone team-specific sponsorships from gambling, cryptocurrency, or alcohol-related companies.

According to Dot eSports, this exclusion was established while the deal was being created. TSM FTX’s branding will be maintained for the teams playing esports games from Riot Games, just outside of Riot Games’ official broadcasts.

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