Skip to main content [aditude-amp id="stickyleaderboard" targeting='{"env":"staging","page_type":"article","post_id":2037501,"post_type":"story","post_chan":"none","tags":null,"ai":false,"category":"none","all_categories":"business,esports,games,pc-gaming,","session":"D"}']

Rocket League Championship Series is back for season 2

Rocket League continues to grow into an esport.

Image Credit: Psyonix
For more like this, check out the Intel Game Dev Channel

Car soccer is a sport, and nothing you can do will stop that now.

Above: Promo for RLCS season 2.

Image Credit: Psyonix

Rocket League’s highest competitive tier is getting a second season. The Rocket League Championship Series returns with registration opening today for teams looking to partake in the three-month season that will have a total prize pool worth more than $250,000. Developer Psyonix is inviting new teams to test their skills against the best in the world like returning champions iBuyPower Cosmic. The studio is hoping to keep its core audience engaged by offering up regular competitions in an esports space that is worth $892 million and growing.

[aditude-amp id="flyingcarpet" targeting='{"env":"staging","page_type":"article","post_id":2037501,"post_type":"story","post_chan":"none","tags":null,"ai":false,"category":"none","all_categories":"business,esports,games,pc-gaming,","session":"D"}']

Psyonix will broadcast RLCS matches to Twitch. The first season attracted 2.3 million viewers, and the studio aims to build on that number going forward.

“RLCS Season 2 is going to be awesome,” Psyonix president Jeremy Dunham said in a canned statement. “We learned a lot from Season 1 and so did our players, and we can’t wait to apply that knowledge to the next competition.”

AI Weekly

The must-read newsletter for AI and Big Data industry written by Khari Johnson, Kyle Wiggers, and Seth Colaner.

Included with VentureBeat Insider and VentureBeat VIP memberships.

Those lessons will manifest as a new format for season 2. This starts with an open qualifier in September and continues into league play later that month. A $10,000 Mid-Season Classic will mark the halfway point, and then league play will continue through October before the regional playoffs and championships kick off in November. Finally, the top four teams from Europe and North America will come together for the $125,000 RLCS Grand Finals.

“Our newer, more simplified format and bigger prize pools are a reflection of what our viewers, pros, and community have been asking for,” said Dunham. “And we’re incredibly proud to give it to them.”

VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Learn More