{"id":6572,"date":"2026-06-27T10:13:58","date_gmt":"2026-06-27T07:13:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/?p=6572"},"modified":"2026-06-27T10:15:05","modified_gmt":"2026-06-27T07:15:05","slug":"riot-games-kick-partnership-lol-valorant-tft-esports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/riot-games-kick-partnership-lol-valorant-tft-esports\/","title":{"rendered":"Riot Games Partners with Kick: LoL, VALORANT, and TFT Esports Now Streaming on Kick"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n

Riot Games officially added Kick to its global esports broadcast network. Starting with MSI 2026, League of Legends, VALORANT, and TFT competitions will stream live on Kick alongside Twitch and YouTube.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Riot Games announced on June 26, 2026 that Kick is joining its global roster of official esports broadcast platforms. The partnership kicks off with the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) 2026, which begins on June 28 in Daejeon, South Korea. Under the agreement, Kick will carry live broadcasts for global and regional events across LoL Esports, VALORANT, and Teamfight Tactics (TFT). China and Korea are excluded from the deal due to existing regional broadcast arrangements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Does the Riot-Kick Deal Include?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Kick joins Twitch and YouTube as a non-exclusive official streaming destination for Riot’s esports ecosystem. The deal covers both global tournaments and regional league broadcasts for all three titles. Official Riot streams on Twitch and YouTube will continue unchanged. Kick is an addition to the broadcast network, not a replacement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Riot’s official announcement, the partnership also opens up creator opportunities. Kick streamers will become eligible for Riot’s expanding partner and creator programs across League of Legends, VALORANT, TFT, and Wild Rift. This is notable because Riot restructured its creator programs in 2026, with open applications scheduled for VALORANT (August 3), League of Legends (September 1), and TFT (October 1). Kick creators will be able to apply through these same windows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do Drops Work on Kick?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. Riot confirmed that the viewing experience on Kick will include the same drops and in-game incentives available on other platforms during global event broadcasts. Players who link their Riot account to Kick can earn rewards just as they would watching on Twitch or YouTube. There is no difference in the reward system between platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Kick, and Why Now?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Kick has grown rapidly since its December 2022 launch. The platform reached 100 million registered users by April 10, 2026. In Q1 2026, Kick recorded 1.27 billion hours watched, a 65.35% increase year-over-year, according to Streamlabs and Stream Hatchet data. March 2026 alone exceeded 500 million hours watched, the platform’s strongest month since October 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Riot specifically highlighted Kick’s strength in Latin America, MENA, and Europe as a key driver behind the partnership. These regions represent growing esports audiences that Riot wants to reach more effectively. League of Legends viewership on Kick was already up 17% in March 2026 before the official partnership was even announced, suggesting organic demand that Riot is now formalising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With Kick now accounting for roughly 14.4% of total hours watched across all major streaming platforms in Q1 2026, the platform has moved well beyond niche status. Twitch remains the dominant force with approximately 240 million monthly active users, but Kick’s trajectory has made it impossible for major publishers to ignore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MSI 2026: The First Event on Kick<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The League of Legends MSI 2026 runs from June 28 through July 12 in Daejeon, South Korea. The Play-In stage starts the tournament, building through to the Grand Final. Fans can watch for free across Twitch, YouTube, Kick, and TikTok, with official broadcasts in English, Korean, French, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Japanese, Spanish, and Chinese depending on the platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For MSI 2026, Kick’s confirmed official broadcast is in English. The tournament also features the largest co-streaming roster in MSI history, with more than 100 co-streamers participating through the Co-Streamer Hub powered by Opera GX. This gives fans the option to watch through their favourite creators rather than only the official broadcast channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moderation Standards on Kick<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Riot Games stated clearly that the same moderation practices and behavioural standards applied to creators on Twitch and YouTube will be enforced on Kick. Streamers broadcasting Riot esports content on Kick must comply with the same rules. The goal is to maintain a safe and positive viewing experience regardless of platform choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This point matters in context. Kick was founded by Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani, who also co-founded the online gambling platform Stake. The connection has drawn scrutiny in esports circles. Riot relaxed some betting sponsorship rules in 2025 but still prohibits gambling advertising in its esports broadcasts. The company’s emphasis on uniform moderation standards signals that existing content policies will remain intact despite the new platform partnership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What This Means for the Streaming Landscape<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Riot Games is one of the most significant esports publishers globally, with League of Legends and VALORANT consistently among the most-watched competitive titles. Adding Kick to the broadcast network represents a meaningful endorsement for the younger platform. For context, Kick grew 131% year-over-year in total hours watched during 2025, reaching 4.5 billion hours for the full year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The non-exclusive nature of the deal is important. Riot is not leaving Twitch or YouTube. Instead, it is expanding viewer choice. This mirrors a broader industry trend where publishers distribute content across multiple platforms rather than signing exclusive deals with a single service. The Korean and Chinese exclusions reflect the reality of separate regional broadcasting ecosystems with their own established partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For players interested in getting more from their Riot Games experience, whether through account progression or in-game content, platforms like GamerMarkt offer League of Legends accounts<\/a> and VALORANT accounts<\/a> with detailed filtering, account value calculators, and secure transaction systems designed specifically for gamers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Details Players Usually Ask About<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Is watching on Kick free?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Yes. All official Riot esports broadcasts on Kick are completely free to watch. No subscription or payment is required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do I get drops on Kick?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Link your Riot account to Kick. Once connected, watching official tournament broadcasts will automatically make you eligible for the same in-game rewards available on Twitch and YouTube. The drop system works identically across all platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which games are covered by this partnership?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

League of Legends Esports, VALORANT Champions Tour, and Teamfight Tactics competitions will be broadcast live on Kick. The creator program integration also extends to Wild Rift. China and Korea are excluded from the broadcast agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will Twitch and YouTube streams continue?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Absolutely. This is a non-exclusive partnership. Twitch and YouTube remain official Riot broadcast platforms. Kick is simply a new addition to the roster, giving viewers another option for where they watch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can Kick streamers co-stream Riot events?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Yes. Kick streamers will have access to co-streaming opportunities for Riot esports events. They will also be eligible to join Riot’s partner and creator programs, which are opening applications throughout mid-to-late 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Riot Games officially added Kick to its global esports broadcast network. Starting with MSI 2026, League of Legends, VALORANT, and TFT competitions will stream live on Kick alongside Twitch and YouTube.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":6573,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-valorant"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6572"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6572\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6574,"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6572\/revisions\/6574"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6573"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gamermarkt.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}