Supercell steps up their mobile esports game with the Clash Royale League

Supercell has announced the Clash Royale League for players worldwide, the follow up to their massive esports debut last year. It kicks off with an in-game event starting today, where promising players stand a chance to join salaried, professional teams as they strive for the World Finals in Winter 2018.

The Clash Royal League will see qualifying teams from regions such as North America, Europe, Asia, and Mainland China. Only 12 teams will get to represent Asia — four from Southeast Asia (including Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao) with the rest from South Korea and Japan.

First on the agenda is the in-game Clash Royale League Challenge event, which runs from now until 18 March. Players who meet requirements set by both the League and the various teams will then go through a selection process, before the successful ones finally get to sign a contract. There’s no standardized salary – it will be “discussed between teams and the player” — but all contracts expire on 31 December 2018.

With money and contracts on the table, aspiring players must be aged 16 or above as of 1 April. They’re still free to pursue their studies or jobs, so long as they participate in all League matches without fail. That said, each team can have up to two Legacy Players who “do not participate in tryouts or the Clash Royale 20 Win Challenge.”

Each team will have four to six players, together with a coach, manager, or both. The League itself will have 140 matches across two seasons, round robin-style, with top teams advancing to the playoffs. Asia’s top performers can look forward to a total of US$200,000 (S$262,122) in payments.

Supercell states that they’ll have more information regarding professional players, teams, and the tournament itself at a later date, though it all does seem incredibly rushed considering the schedule below.

2018 Schedule:   

Thankfully, the community has already had a taste of the esports fervor last year, when more than 27 million players participated in the headline-making, million-dollar Crown Championship.

Clash Royale is available on both iOS and Android. However, do note that Supercell has partnered with Google Play for the Clash Royale League in Asia, so all matches will be played on Android devices.