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| 2014 NA Challenger Series | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
| Tournament Information | ||
| Organizer | Riot Games | |
| Sponsor(s) | American Express Serve Coke Zero Plantronics Gaming | |
| Location & Dates | ||
| Region | North America | |
| Event Type | Online/Offline | |
| Country | United States | |
| Address | 1600 Rosecrans Avenue Stage 22 Manhattan Beach CA 90266 | |
| Start Date | 2014-01-17 | |
| End Date | 2014-08-24 | |
| Social Media & Links | ||
| ||
The 2014 NA Challenger Series is the first Challenger Series run by Riot Games.
Overview
The 2014 NA Challenger Series is a talent building league and a direct bridge into the LCS. Twenty teams from the Ranked 5s Ladder will be placed into five brackets of four, where the top five teams will be placed into Challenger Series #1. The teams will then play in a single elimination bracket; the top three teams from this bracket will advance into Challenger Series #2, where they will be joined by another five teams from another twenty team qualifier identical to the one for Challenger Series #1.
Teams earn points from finishes in each Challenger Series. The top six teams with the most points will compete against each other, where the top three will earn a spot in the next LCS Promotion Tournament.
The Challenger Series will air following each LCS broadcast on Thursday and Friday.
Format
The Challenger Series runs alongside the LCS for the entire 2014 season, with the Promotion Tournament serving as the window between both leagues. To participate in the Challenger Series, teams must first prove their worth by being one of the top 20 eligible teams on the Ranked 5s Team Ladder before the ladder freeze date. For each regular LCS split, there will be two Challenger Series that feeds top teams into the Challenger Playoffs based on cumulative points over both series. The Challenger Playoffs will crown that split’s champion and also promote three teams into the Promotion Tournament for their shot into the LCS.
- Play-In 1
The top 20 teams from the Ranked 5s Ladder are split into five brackets of four. Each bracket plays down to one winner in a best-of-one series. One team from each bracket, a total of five, advances into Challenger Series 1.
- Challenger Series #1
The top five teams from Play-In 1 and three pre-qualified teams who dropped from the Promotion Tournament compete in a six week series earning cash prizes and points based on their finish.
- Play-In 2
Another set of top 20 teams are pulled from the Ranked 5s Team Ladder. After a best-of-one showdown, five more teams advance into Challenger Series 2.
- Challenger Series #2
The top five teams from Play-In 2 and top three from Challenger Series 1 battle in another series bracket earning cash prizes and more points.
- Challenger Playoffs
Top six teams with the highest points across both series are seeded into a playoff bracket. The playoffs hold a similar structure to the LCS playoffs. The winner is crowned the series champion and additionally, the top three teams advance into the Promotion Tournament.
- Promotion Tournament
The bottom three teams of the LCS and the top three of Challenger Playoffs duke it out for a spot in the LCS with the LCS teams choosing their Challenger opponent. Winners of this tournament proceed into the LCS and losers are guaranteed a spot in the next Challenger Series.
Tournament Information
Prize Pool
| Place | Prize | Team | |
| Spring Playoffs | Summer Playoffs | ||
 1
|
$ 16,000 |  LMQ
|
 Team 8
|
 2
|
$ 10,000 |  Cloud9 Tempest
|
 Curse Academy
|
 3
|
$ 8,000 |  compLexity.Black
|
 Team Coast
|
 4
|
$ 3,000 | Curse Academy
|
 Team LoLPro
|
| 5/6 | $ 1,250 |  vVv Gaming
|
 XDG Gaming
|
 compLexity.Red
|
 Denial eSports
| ||
Series Points
| 2014 Challenger Series | ||||||||
| Place | Spring Season | Total | Summer Season | Total | ||||
| Team | Series 1 | Series 2 | Team | Series 1 | Series 2 | |||
| 1. | LMQ
|
9 | 12 | 21 | Team Coast
|
9 | 12 | 21 |
| 2. | Cloud9 Tempest
|
1 | 10 | 11 | Curse Academy
|
5 | 10 | 15 |
| 3. | compLexity.Black
|
7 | 2 | 9 | Team LoLPro
|
7 | 7 | 14 |
| 3. | Curse Academy
|
1 | 8 | 9 | Team 8
|
- | 8 | 8 |
| 5. | vVv Gaming
|
1 | 7 | 8 | XDG Gaming
|
4 | 2 | 6 |
| 6. | compLexity.Red
|
5 | 2 | 7 | Denial eSports
|
- | 2 | 2 |
| 7. |  COGnitive Gaming
|
4 | - | 4 | COGnitive Gaming
|
- | 2 | 2 |
| 8. | Team 8
|
- | 2 | 2 |  Zenith Esports
|
- | 2 | 2 |
| 8. | Team LoLPro
|
- | 2 | 2 |  Area of Effect eSports
|
1 | - | 1 |
| 10. |  y so E-Sports
|
1 | - | 1 | Cloud9 Tempest
|
1 | - | 1 |
| 10. | - | - | - |  Team Green Forest
|
1 | - | 1 | |
| 10. | - | - | - | XDG Gaming
|
1 | - | 1 | |
| Place | Points | |
| Series 1 | Series 2 | |
| 1. | 9 | 12 |
| 2. | 7 | 10 |
| 3. | 5 | 8 |
| 4. | 4 | 7 |
| 5.-8. | 1 | 2 |
Participants
| Spring Season | |||||||
| Series 1 | Series 2 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud9 Tempest
|
COGnitive Gaming
|
compLexity.Black
|
compLexity.Red
| ||||
| compLexity.Black
|
compLexity.Red
|
LMQ
|
Curse Academy
| ||||
| Curse Academy
|
LMQ
|
Cloud9 Tempest
|
Team 8
| ||||
| vVv Gaming White
|
y so E-Sports
|
Team LoLPro
|
vVv Gaming
| ||||
| Summer Season | |||||||
| Series 1 | Series 2 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Area of Effect eSports
|
Cloud9 Tempest
|
COGnitive Gaming
|
Curse Academy
| ||||
| Curse Academy
|
 Frank Fang Gaming
|
Denial eSports
|
Team 8
| ||||
| Team Coast
|
Team Green Forest
|
Team Coast
|
Team LoLPro
| ||||
| Team LoLPro
|
XDG Gaming
|
 Wazabi Gaming
|
Zenith Esports
| ||||