According to information from Sheep Esports, Riot has informed the clubs: if an academy team wins the EMEA Masters, it will receive a slot in the winter split of LEC 2026, irrespective of whether the organization already has a main team in the league.

Previously, the possibility of academy teams directly entering the LEC was only discussed theoretically, and many doubted that Riot would actually allow subsidiary teams, already having a franchise in the league, to compete for new slots — examples of this are  Karmine Corp Blue  and  Los Heretics .

However, the decision has now been made: winners of the EMEA Masters will be able to secure a place in the winter split of LEC 2026, even if they are academy teams. This sharply intensifies the competition and complicates the path for independent teams, like  Unicorns of Love , as two academies have already secured a spot in the tournament finals, and one of them is guaranteed to make it to the main European lineup.

For Unicorns of Love , this is a pivotal turn: their path to returning to the LEC has become noticeably more challenging. If previously UOL had chances to qualify based on the exclusion of academy teams, now the only option is to win the EMEA Masters. In any unfavorable outcome, the slot will go to the victorious academy, even though it is the second team of its organization.

Riot's decision fundamentally changes the competition: now even independent teams outside the franchise must directly outperform all top European club academies. We await the official announcement of the new rules, but right now, UOL's chances of making it to the LEC have indeed plummeted. If Unicorns of Love cannot make it to the finals through all competitors, their return will once again be postponed.