Schalke 04 Esports Academy Team accepting player applications

LoL Esports
December 12, 2018
Kieran Lee

Considering the recent success of Schalke 04, their application to join the LEC (previously known as EU LCS) has been approved by Riot games. As part of the new league, teams are required to have an academy team / roster. As the 2019 Spring split gets closer, it is imperative for teams to quickly form their academy team. Schalke’s decision to openly advertise a position on their roster allows them to sift through a wide amount of talent.

schalke-04-team-league-of-legends

© Riot Games

History of Schalke 04

FC Schalke 04 was originally a major professional German football club. The organisation then decided to branch into esports, primarily making headlines in the FIFA esports news, and in 2016, launching a competitive League of Legends team by purchasing Element’s 2016 EU LCS Summer seed position and roster line up. Unfortunately, the team underperformed, no surprise considering the FC Schalke 04 management lacked experience in player management for the League of Legends space. This forced the team to be relegated out of the EU LCS at the end of 2016, eventually leading to their whole roster disbanding.

Uphill for Schalke

Since 2016, Shalke 04 had dominated the EU LCS scene in 2017, going undefeated and later being promoted once again to enter the EU LCS. In 2018, while their Spring split had been underwhelming, placing 8th place in the EU LCS Spring split, Schalke completely turned around their Summer season. The team placed top three in the Summer split before finishing runners up for the EU LCS Summer Playoffs, only behind Fnatic.

Application criteria for Schalke 04’s academy team

According to a press release by the team, those who apply must meet five important criteria:

  • “Got what it takes to improve” – They want players who have potential and are ultimately willing to improve.
  • “Master tier in Season 8” – While rank is not everything, this criteria reduces the number of applications Schalke has to go through, reasonable considering there is not much time left to set up a cohesive team.
  • “Has the heart in the right place” – A positive player, while there may be toxic people who are extremely talented and excel in solo queue, this sort of player does not mend well in team play.
  • “Good English skills” – Communication is key, especially for such a team orientated game like League of Legends. More specifically, competitive LoL requires impeccable communication and synergy, as solo plays rarely decide games in such high level games.
  • “Looks good in our jersey” – Truly wanting to join the organisation.

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