| Rocket League Championship Series | |
|---|---|
 RLCS Logo from 2020 – 2022 and 2025 – Present | |
| Genre | Rocket League tournament |
| Location | Various |
| Years active | 2016–present |
| Inaugurated | Season 1 (2016) |
| Most recent | 2025 |
| Organized by |
|
| Website | rocketleague |
 2026 Rocket League Championship Series | |
TheRocket League Championship Series (RLCS) is an annualRocket Leagueesports tournament series produced by Blast ApS and endorsed byPsyonix, the game's developer. It consists of two online qualification splits in several regions, with teams earning points towards qualifying for midseason tournaments known as Majors and the Rocket League World Championship, both of which are held as LAN events worldwide.
Psyonix had observed the popularity ofRocket League matches onTwitch and otherlive streaming platforms likeYouTube by early 2016 and were looking to use the game more in Esports.[1] In March 2016, Psyonix announced the first Rocket League Championship Series; the finals took place in June 2016 with aUS$55,000 prize pool, and was won by iBUYPOWER Cosmic.[2][3] The second season of the championship series took place in December 2016 with a $125,000 prize pool, and was won by FlipSid3 Tactics.[4] A third series began in March 2017, with the $300,000 prize pool finals taking place three months later. In this season, two teams from the oceanic region were also invited to compete.[5]
A second division, the Rocket League Rival Series (RLRS), was added in Season 4. The two teams finishing at the bottom of the RLCS and the two teams finishing at the top of the RLRS for each region play each other in a promotion tournament at the end of the season to determine if teams are promoted or relegated. At the advent of Season 5 in June 2018, Psyonix organised and managed the event alone. Previous to this, they partnered with Twitch. Season 6 started in September 2018 and featured a $1,000,000 prize pool.[6] For Season 7, Psyonix introduced South America as a new region.[7] Season 8 took place in December 2019. The Season 9 championship was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with winners of the regional championships being considered the champions.[8] In July 2020, Psyonix announced a new format for the tenth season of RLCS, known as RLCS X. This format did away with league play and the RLRS in favor of teams earning points through three regional splits, all culminating in three seasonal majors.[9]
The 2021–22 season began in October 2021, bringing in four new regions (Middle East and North Africa, Asia Pacific North, Asia Pacific South, and Sub-Saharan Africa), a more reliable circuit similar to Season X, and a $6 million prize pool. The new circuit consisted of 3 splits, containing 3 regionals and 1 international LAN major each, culminating in a World Championship to finish the season. The Majors were won by Team BDS,G2 Esports andMoist Esports. The season was won by Team BDS.[10]
For the 2022–23 season Asia Pacific North and Asia Pacific South were combined into a single region with point totals being lowered and each regional event being called the Open, Cup and invitational. The Majors were won byGen.G,Karmine Corp andTeam Vitality, the latter of which would go on to win the World Championship.[11]
Unlike the past two seasons, there was a considerably longer offseason after 2022–23 accompanying the removal of one of the splits, meaning that the 13th season of the RLCS wouldn't begin until January 26, 2024.[12][13] The 2024 season saw the removal of the Open, Cup and Invitational system for each region in favor of three new open qualifying stages, those being a double-elimination qualifying bracket, aSwiss-system tournament featuring the top 16 from open qualifying and a knockout stage featuring the top 8 from the Swiss stage. This open qualifying cycle is repeated three times per split, awarding RLCS points after each stage, before the top teams in RLCS points in each region from those stages advance to that split's Major, which features the Swiss and knockout stages from open qualifying and award additional points. The combined standings decides who advances to the World Championship, which was reduced from 24 to 16 teams in the process using the same format as the Majors.
On January 4, 2024, it was announced that Blast ApS, a tournament organizer known for theBlast Premier circuit inCounter-Strike as well as organizing the esports circuit forTom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege, would take over from Psyonix as organizer for the RLCS in 2024, having previously run theFortnite Champion Series (Previously run by Psyonix's parent companyEpic Games) since 2022.[14]
The first major of the RLCS 2024 season was won by Gentlemates Alpine, with the second won by G2 Stride. The season was won by Team BDS. Towards the end of the RLCS 2024 World Championship, it was announced that RLCS would return for the 2025 season in January, with a total prize pool of $5,000,000, the addition of a 1v1 tournament, and changes to the 3v3 tournament which include the addition of a last chance open qualifiers tournament between Major 2 and the World Championship, and expanding the World Championship to 20 teams.[15]
The 2025 season uses 2 Swiss groups, 16 teams in each. Top 8 of each group advance to the GSL stage. 2 groups of 8, 4 advance to the hybrid elimination bracket. This format is used for Opens and the World Championship, but Worlds doesn't use the Swiss groups and uses a GSL bracket for the Play-ins. Before the Swiss groups, there is a double elimination bracket and top 32 qualify for the Swiss groups (24 in Open 2, 3, 5 and 6 as top 8 of the last Open automatically qualify for the Swiss groups). Majors use 1 16 team Swiss stage, in which top 8 qualify for the hybrid elimination bracket.
The first major of the season was won by Karmine Corp. The major also debuted the RLCS 1v1 event, which was won by France's Axel "Mawkzy" Timone, defeating Brazil's Yan "yanxnz" Xisto Nolasco 4–3. Mawkzy will compete at the RLCS World Championship at Lyon-Décines in September.[16] The second major of the season was won by Team Falcons and marked the Middle East's first RLCS international title since their introduction to the league in 2021.[17] The Middle East is, to date, the only region outside North America or Europe that have won an RLCS international event. The second major's RLCS 1v1 final also saw Saudi Arabia's Hisham "Nwpo" Alqadi defeat Brazil's João "diaz" Henrique 4–1 to qualify for the 1v1 World Championship, where he faced Mawkzy for the title of RLCS's first 1v1 World Champion, and won 4–1 in the Grand Final.[18] Also in the 2025 World Championship was the 3v3 event, where NRG Esports won against Team Falcons in the Grand Final.[19]
The 2026 season started on 14 November 2025 and will end on 20 September 2026. The all new Kickoff Weekend LAN in Copenhagen is happened on 5–7 December and featured the Open 1 top 6 of North America and Europe. 2v2 will also be added to the RLCS.[20]
The Kickoff Weekend LAN happened on 5–7 December with the top 6 North American and European teams of Open 1. Their regions Open 1 continued on 5–6 December (Europe on the 5th and North America on the 6th) and the top 4 of each Open advanced to the 8 team stepladder bracket. The winner, Karmine Corp, qualified for the Boston Major and gave Europe an extra qualification spot for the first and second major and the World Championship.[1]
The first Major of the season will take place inBoston at theAgganis Arena from 19 to 22 February 2026. The qualification process will take place from 14 November 2025 to 8 February 2026. The Boston Major will consist of 16 teams in a group stage and an 8 team hybrid elimination playoff bracket.[21]
The second Major of the season will take place inParis in theLa Défense Arena from 20 to 24 May 2026. The qualification process will take place from 13 March to 26 April 2026. The Paris Major will consist of 16 teams in a group stage and a 12 team hybrid elimination playoff bracket.[22]
The Rocket League 2026 World Championship will happen from 15 - 20 September 2026. The Last Chance Qualification stage will take place from 24 July to 16 August. It will consist of an 8 team GSL play-in bracket, which then takes the top 4 teams and puts them into a group stage with the auto-qualified top 12. From here, the format is the same as the Paris Major. The location is currently unknown.[23]
| Season | Dates | Winner | Finals | Runner-up | Location | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April – August 2016 Worlds: 6 — 7 August 2016 | iBUYPOWER Cosmic | 4–2 | FlipSid3 Tactics |  Los Angeles | [24] |
| 2 | October – December 2016 Worlds: 3 — 4 December 2016 | FlipSid3 Tactics | 4–1, 4–1 | Mock-It eSports EU |  Amsterdam | [25] |
| 3 | April – June 2017 Worlds: 2 — 4 June 2017 | Northern Gaming | 4–2, 4–3 | Mock-It eSports EU | Los Angeles | [26] |
| 4 | September – November 2017 Worlds: 12 — 14 November 2017 | Gale Force eSports | 4–0 | Method | Washington, D.C. | [27] |
| 5 | March – June 2018 Worlds: 8 — 10 June 2018 | Dignitas | 4–1, 4–3 | NRG Esports |  London | [28] |
| 6 | September – November 2018 Worlds: 9 — 11 November 2018 | Cloud9 | 4–1, 4–1 | Dignitas | Las Vegas | [29] |
| 7 | April – June 2019 Worlds: 21 — 23 June 2019 | Renault Vitality | 4–1 | G2 Esports | Newark | [30] |
| 8 | October – December 2019 Worlds: 13 — 15 December 2019 | NRG Esports | 4–3 | Renault Vitality |  Madrid | [31] |
| 9 | February – April 2020
| Cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic | ||||
| X | August 2020 – June 2021 Championships: 15 — 20 June 2021 | |||||
| 2021–22 | October 2021 – August 2022 Worlds: 4 — 7 and 9 — 14 August 2022 | Team BDS [fr] | 4–1 | G2 Esports | Fort Worth | [32] |
| 2022–23 | October 2022 – August 2023 Worlds: 3 — 6 and 8 — 13 August 2023 | Team Vitality | 4–0 | Team BDS |  Düsseldorf | [33] |
| 2024 | January – September 2024 Worlds: 10 — 15 September 2024 | Team BDS | 4–2 | G2 Stride | Fort Worth | [34] |
| 2025 | January – September 2025 Worlds: 10 — 14 September 2025 | NRG Esports | 4–1 | Team Falcons |  Lyon-Décines | [35] |
| 2026 | November 2025 – September 2026 Worlds: 15 — 20 September 2026 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| Season | Major | Dates | Winner | Finals | Runner-up | Location | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | Fall Major | 8 – 12 December 2021 | Team BDS | 4–1, 4–3 | The General NRG |  Stockholm | [36] |
| Winter Major | 24 – 28 March 2022 | G2 Esports | 3–4, 4–2 | Team Queso | Los Angeles | [37] | |
| Spring Major | 29 June – 3 July 2022 | Moist Esports | 4–3, 4–0 | Team Falcons | London | [38] | |
| 2022–23 | Fall Major | 8 – 11 December 2022 | Gen.G Esports | 4–2 | Moist Esports | Rotterdam | [39] |
| Winter Major | 6 – 9 April 2023 | Karmine Corp | 4–2 | FaZe Clan | San Diego | [40] | |
| Spring Major | 6 – 9 July 2023 | Team Vitality | 4–2, 4–1 | Team BDS | Boston | [41] | |
| 2024 | Major 1 (Copenhagen Major) | 28 – 31 March 2024 | Gentle Mates | 4–2 | G2 Stride |  Copenhagen | [42] |
| Major 2 (London Major) | 20 – 23 June 2024 | G2 Stride | 4–1 | Team Falcons | London | [43] | |
| 2025 | Major 1 (Birmingham Major) | 27 – 30 March 2025 | Karmine Corp | 4–0 | The Ultimates | Birmingham | [44] |
| Major 2 (Raleigh Major) | 26 – 29 June 2025 | Team Falcons | 4–1 | Dignitas | Raleigh | [45] | |
| 2026 | Kickoff Weekend | 5 – 7 December 2025 | Karmine Corp | 4–0 | Shopify Rebellion | Copenhagen | |
| Major 1 (Boston Major) | 19 – 22 February 2026 | TBD | TBD | TBD | Boston | ||
| Major 2 (Paris Major) | 20 – 24 May 2026 | TBD | TBD | TBD | Paris |
| Season | Dates | Winner | Finals | Runner-up | Location | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | March — September 2025 Worlds: 13 September 2025 |  Nwpo | 4–1 | Mawkzy | Lyon-Décines | [46] |
| 2026 | May — September 2026 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| Season | Dates | Winner | Finals | Runner-up | Location | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | May — September 2026 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
* Team or organization no longer participates inRocket League esports.
| Team | Region | World Championships | Majors | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team BDS [fr] | EU | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Team Vitality | EU | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| NRG Esports | NA | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| G2 Esports | NA | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Karmine Corp | EU | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Gen.G Esports | NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Gentle Mates | EU | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Moist Esports | EU | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Team Falcons | MENA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| FlipSid3 Tactics | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Cloud9 | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Dignitas | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FlipSid3 Tactics | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Gale Force eSports | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Northern Gaming | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Turbopolsa has won the most World Championships with four. Vatira has won the most Majors with three.
* Player no longer participates inRocket League esports.
| Player | Real Name | Region | World Championships | Majors | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turbopolsa | Pierre Silfver | EU, NA | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Kaydop | Alexandre Courant | EU | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| M0nkey M00n | Evan Rogez | EU, MENA | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Vatira | Axel Touret | EU | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Atomic | Massimo Franceschi | NA | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| ViolentPanda | Jos van Meurs | EU | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Alpha54 | Yanis Champenois | EU | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| BeastMode | Landon Konerman | NA | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Daniel | Daniel Piecenski | NA | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| dralii | Samy Hajji | EU, MENA | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| ExoTiiK | Brice Bigeard | EU | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Extra | Alexandre Paoli | EU | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Radosin | Andrea Radovanovic | EU | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Seikoo | Enzo Grondein | EU | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| zen | Alexis Bernier | EU | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| itachi | Amine Benayachi | EU | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 0ver Zer0 | Ted Keil | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Remkoe | Remco den Boer | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Fairy Peak! | Victor Locquet | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| GarrettG | Garrett Gordon | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| gimmick | Jesus Parra | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| jstn. | Justin Morales | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Deevo | David Morrow | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| gReazymeister | Marius Ranheim | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| kuxir97 | Francesco Cinquemani | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Kronovi | Cameron Bills | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Lachinio | Brandon Lachin | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Markydooda | Mark Exton | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Scrub Killa | Kyle Robertson | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| SquishyMuffinz | Mariano Arruda | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| torment | Kyle Storer | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| ApparentlyJack | Jack Benton | EU, NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Atow. | Tristan Soyez | EU | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Chicago | Reed Wilen | NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Chronic | Nick Iwanski | NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| JKnaps | Jacob Knapman | NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Joyo | Joseph Young | EU | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| juicy | Charles Sabiani | EU | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Kiileerrz | Yazid Bakhashwin | MENA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| noly | Joseph Kidd | EU, NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| rise. | Finlay Ferguson | EU, MENA, NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Rw9 | Saleh Bakhashwin | MENA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| trk511 | Mohammed Alotaibi | MENA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
* Coach no longer participates inRocket League esports.
| Coach | Real Name | Region | World Championships | Majors | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ferra | Victor Francal | EU | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Satthew | Matthew Ackermann | NA | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Eversax | Benjamin Wagner | EU | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Gregan | Mike Ellis | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| mew | Théo Ponzoni | EU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Sizz | Emiliano Benny | NA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Allushin | Braxton Lagarec | NA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| d7oom-24 | Abdulrahman Saad | MENA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Kael | Javier Ojeda | EU | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| n0ah | Noah Hinder | EU | 0 | 1 |
European teams have the most victories (8) followed by North America (4). Three organisations (Team BDS,Team Vitality andNRG Esports have won two World Championships. Only one team outside of Europe and North America have reached the final, that beingTeam Falcons[47] in 2025, competing from Middle East and North Africa. Four players have won the World Championship multiple times,Turbopolsa (4),Kaydop (3), ViolentPanda (2) and M0nkey M00n (2). Only 3 players have won consecutive titles, being Turbopolsa, Kaydop and ViolentPanda, with Turbopolsa winning 3 in a row and the others winning 2.
European teams have the most victories (6), followed by North America (3), and Middle East and North Africa (1). Two organisations,Karmine Corp andG2 Esports, have won two Majors. Three players have won a Major multiple times, Vatira (3), followed by Itachi (2) and Atomic (2).
After participating in the 2022 and 2023Gamers8 tournaments, the Gamers8 circuit rebranded into theEsports World Cup, with Rocket League being one of the titles for the2024 and2025. These would be won by Team BDS in 2024[48] andKarmine Corp in 2025.[49] They would defeatTeam Falcons and Geekay Esports respectively.