The LPL will be the first region to move away from the current relegation system in favor of a franchised, city-based system, according to Wanplus reporter Bryan Yu and LPL journalist Sheng Yi and an official announcement from the lolesports official Weibo account. All 12 teams that are currently playing in the LPL will be guaranteed a spot in the new franchised system, which will increase to 14 teams in 2018 and up to 20 teams in the future, according to the translations of the announcement. LPL caster Zack “Rusty” Pye believes that the move to a franchise system could work in China, in part due to the large followings many of the teams and players have in the country. “There is a large enough following for the players, team and league that I can see franchising be successful,” Rusty said. “I personally believe that if executed well then it will be business as usual just more epic, but I’m hoping that’s the outcome not expecting.” In addition, the LoL Secondary Pro League and TGA will merge into one league, which will become a development league, according to Yi. The new system will also be city based, with home and away games set to begin in 2018, according to Yi. Rusty said while a city-based system is great in theory, he has concerns for the stability of the English broadcast when the system is implemented. “I think city based is awesome conceptually,” Rusty said. “I worry for my personal broadcast stability and generally stability of the En stream but it’s just such a cool experience to see LoL take a step towards actually being a traditional style sport. Exciting, scary, worrying but definitely not bad.”