Realm Champions League Rises From the Ashes of SoloQ League
Realm Champions League is back with three months of action and a $120,000 prize pool.
Realm Champions League is Realm’s answer to pro tournaments after the announcement of the SoloQ League on March 5, 2023. After negative reaction to the SoloQ League, Realm is hoping that some changes will make it a more successful and popular competition.
Realm Champions League is going to run for three months, with broadcasts every weekday night at 4 PM PST. There is a prize pool of $120,000 for the pro teams competing in North America. All of these teams were invited to the league in contrast to SoloQ League’s open registration.
More details on the teams and the tournament will be revealed in the next few days.
What Happened to SoloQ League?
When Realm announced the SoloQ League, it was initially praised for its unique format and for allowing players to find squads of a similar skill level. But top level players were very vocal in their disdain for SoloQ League after experiencing matches with hackers, glitches, and bad communication.
Many pros also called out Realm for using the vouch system. The lobbies often felt mismatched and the teams seemed unfairly skilled. This is because players who didn’t meet the rank requirements — achieving Masters in EU, Predator in NA, or competing in the ALGS Challengers Cup — were allowed to participate through the vouch system.
It soon became obvious that pre-made pro teams would create a more fair and balanced tournament than allowing players without previous competitive experience to join them in matches.
“Realm should be for full squads and normal Apex should be for solos,” said pro Alliance player John "Hakis" Håkansson.
At the time, Realm immediately reacted to criticism by introducing The Crucible, a system that was meant to regulate underperforming entrants. But the participation count continued to decline as pros decided it wasn’t worth the hassle. The SoloQ League ultimately shut down a month after it was started.
But Realm clearly hasn’t given up on competitive Apex Legends. The Champions League has been seen as a positive change by pros, who are excited at the chance to compete at a high level for cash as the ALGS Split Two season ends. This will be a great few months of competition that fans can watch on Realm’s Twitch channel.
Now, participants and fans alike will have to wait for schedule updates from Realm.
