Mastercard Expands Global Relationship with Riot Games As Exclusive Category Partner of League of Legends® Championship Series in North America

Brand Also Debuts First Documentary in “Together Start Something Priceless” Global Content Series, Celebrating the League of Legends Community

Mastercard today announced it has expanded its existing, global partnership with Riot Games League of Legends esports into financial services category exclusivity for the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS), the preeminent esports series in North America, deepening its relationship with the largest esport in the world and reinforcing its support of the esports community.  Additionally, Mastercard today introduced “Together Start Something Priceless,” a League of Legends community driven content series that will showcase unique stories of League of Legends players around the world.

“This expanded relationship represents the continued growth in popularity of esports as well as the success of the global partnership between Mastercard and Riot Games,” said Cheryl Guerin, executive vice president of North America Marketing & Communications at Mastercard.  “We are also excited through the ‘Together Start Something Priceless’ content series to not only demonstrate our support for this community, but also share some of the great stories and inspiring individuals we have encountered during our partnership.”



As the exclusive financial services category sponsor for the LCS, beginning with this weekend’s Summer Split Finals in Detroit, Mastercard will curate a wide range of Priceless experiences and exclusive cardholder benefits across onsite event activations, via Priceless.com and through other to-be-announced promotions to bring cardholders closer to their passion and help fans experience what they love about League of Legends competitions. Mastercard will also partner with the platform to integrate payment technology that drives a simple and secure payment experience. This checkout experience arms players with tokenized checkouts masking their card number making every transaction unique for those saving their cards and for those that aren’t, Mastercard will eliminate laborious key entry with Secure Remote Commerce, a simple click to pay check out.

“Mastercard has already proven themselves to be true stewards of the League of Legends community. After launching our partnership last year, including global events and the curation of truly priceless moments at Worlds, we’re thrilled to be expanding the relationship and partnering with Mastercard to deliver additional unique experiences directly to LCS fans in North America,” said Matthew Archambault, Head of Esports Partnerships and Business Development for North America at Riot Games.

“Together Start Something Priceless” Content Series

Mastercard has partnered with MOFILM, a leader in crowdsourcing and social content development, to curate five entertaining and inspiring stories that underscore the brand’s platform “Together Start Something Priceless,” as told by League of Legends players from around the world who are positively impacting the community, leading the way in a trailblazing manner or supporting each other.

Together Mastercard and MOFILM will deliver five films from select markets (United States, Germany, China, France and Brazil) over 6 months. Each story will focus on League of Legend players and their unique stories. Debuting today, the first film tells the story of professional esports competitor Stephen Ellis, a.k.a. Snoopeh, of the United States and how he has married his passion for League of Legends esports with an entrepreneurial spirit to help other players turn their love of the sport into a career.

All films will be unveiled on the new @MastercardNexus channel on Twitter, while Mastercard’s YouTube channel will serve as a library for all the films.

Key components of the new LCS partnership

• Sponsorship of the LCS “Player of the Week Award (POTW),” which will recognize one professional LCS athlete as selected by a committee of commentators and analysts on weekly play and attributes. As an additional deliverable to the community and viewership, fans will have the ability to vote on who they believe the POTW will be and potentially receive the same token awarded to that athlete. More details to be announced in the near future

• Presenting sponsorship of the LCS Opening Ceremonies in Detroit, featuring enhanced brand visibility, assets, and access including Priceless Experiences for cardholders such as backstage tours, VIP viewing with League of Legends pro players and meet-and-greets with the featured musical acts

• Opportunity to issue co-branded products, featuring esports marks and a variety of League of Legends images, photos and artwork, via Mastercard banking partners, allowing consumers to further integrate their fandom into their everyday lives

For more than two decades, Mastercard has partnered with prominent organizations in sports and entertainment to enable cardholders to further tap into this passion through exclusive access, unique experiences, and one-of-a-kind fan engagement opportunities. LCS is the latest property to join Mastercard’s impressive roster of premier partners, including Major League Baseball, the PGA TOUR®, The Open, The Australian Open, Roland-Garros, Rugby World Cup and UEFA Champions League, among others.

About Mastercard

Mastercard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a technology company in the global payments industry. Our global payments processing network connects consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. Mastercard products and solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter @MastercardNews, join the discussion on the Beyond the Transaction Blog and subscribe for the latest news on the Engagement Bureau.

About LCS 

The League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) is the professional League of Legends esports league in North America. League of Legends is the most watched esport in the world with 13 international leagues worldwide.  LCS is overseen and operated by Riot Games under the leadership of Chris "Chopper" Hopper, Head of Esports for North America and Chris Greeley, LCS Commissioner. To learn more about the LCS, visit lolesports.com

Mastercard PR Contact:                                                                            

Sarah Ely | Sarah.Ely@mastercard.com

Riot Games PR Contact:                                                                                           

Kaitlin Stewart | kstewart@riotgames.com