Despite being a minor region, the LJL constantly offers fantastic competition every year. Heading into almost 20 years of competition, the region offers a number of esports betting opportunities. Learn more about the LJL in our LJL betting guide 2023!
Top LJL Betting Sites for 2023
LJL Schedule
As of right now, the LJL Summer Split is ongoing – here’s a quick look at the schedule:
| Schedule | Dates |
|---|---|
| Summer Season | 10th June - 16th June |
| Summer Playoffs | 22nd July - 20th August |
LJL Summer Playoffs: Teams & Format
The LJL Summer Playoffs 2023 is the climax of the 18th season of Japan’s professional League of Legends league, a league featured by League of Legends betting sites.
Just like any other year, this final event puts everything on the line for the best teams in Japan. After the top 8 teams from the LJL Summer Season competed in a single round robin, with BO3 matches, the following eight teams have been seeded into the Playoffs:
Here are the eight teams competing at the LJL Summer Playoffs 2023:
- DetonatioN FocusMe (6-1)
- Fukuoka SoftBank HAWKS gaming (5-2)
- FENNEL (5-2)
- Crest Gaming Act (4-3)
- Sengoku Gaming (4-3)
- Burning Core (2-5)
- AXIZ (2-5)
- V3 Esports (0-7)
Specifically, the top 4 teams have seeded to the Upper Bracket, while the bottom 4 teams have seeded to the Lower Bracket of the double elimination bracket.
While each match is BO5, the stakes aren’t always the same. For those unaware, a loss in the Lower Bracket results in elimination, while an Upper Bracket loss makes a team fall to the Lower Bracket.
Notably, the Grand Finals of the LJL Summer Playoffs is certainly the best League of Legends betting opportunity.
LJL Summer Playoffs Schedule
The following opening matches have been scheduled for the LJL Summer Playoffs schedule:
Upper Bracket Round 2
- DetonatioN FocusMe vs Crest Gaming Act – 07/29/23 – 11:00 CEST
- SoftBank HAWKS vs FENNEL – 7/30/23 – 11:00 CEST
Lower Bracket Round 1
- Sengoku Gaming vs V3 Esports – 07/22/23 – 11:00 CEST
- Burning Core vs AXIZ – 7/23/23 – 11:00 CEST
LJL Odds & Markets
If your LJL betting experience starts at the LJL Summer Playoffs, it’s essential to understand the different betting markets and LoL odds.
Overall, as outlined in our LoL betting guide, there are a number of LJL odds and markets to consider. Firstly, we have simple betting markets:
- Tournament Outright Winner – users pick out a team to walk away as the overall victors, odds provided before a tournament by esports bookmakers
- Match Outright Winner – a match, consisting of multiple rounds/maps may also be predicted for an overall winner, may be offered as standard or a live betting opportunity
- Map Outright Winner – users have the chance to predict a map winner every map, once again ranging from live or standard betting
Notably, the above esports betting markets may also be accompanied with Handicap bets, namely for Matches and Maps as esports bookmakers minimize the risk on betting on one-sided match-ups.
Beyond simple betting markets, there are also special bets to consider, typically for veterans or those with in-game knowledge:
- First Blood – predicting which player or which team will walk away with the first kill of the match-up
- First Baron/Dragon Slayed – a pivotal in-game moment which users may predict ahead of the map
And there are plenty of other examples depending on the esports betting site.
LJL at Worlds & MSI
Participating yearly at Worlds and featuring in LoL Worlds betting, LJL teams rarely progress beyond the Play-In Stage. However, in the past few years, there have been some impressive performances at Worlds, breaking into the top 15 on one occasion.
To help provide context for our LJL Summer Playoffs predictions and the winning team’s future, here’s how LJL teams have performed at MSI and Worlds in the past five iterations:
| Season | MSI Representative | Placing |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | DetonatioN FM | 12-13th |
| 2022 | DetonatioN FM | 9-10th |
| 2021 | Detonation FM | 7-9th |
| 2019 | Detonation FM | 8-9th |
| 2018 | PENTAGRAM | 14th |
| Season | Worlds Representative | Placing |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | DetonatioN FM | 17-18th |
| 2021 | DetonatioN FM | 14-16th |
| 2020 | V3 Esports | 21-22nd |
| 2019 | Detonation FM | 21-24th |
| 2018 | Detonation FM | 17-20th |
LJL Summer Playoffs Predictions
Considering the tables above, it’s clear that DetonatioN FM have dominated this region in the past few years.
This year, they are currently the Summer Season champions and look to once again represent the LJL at Worlds 2023.
Image Credits: Riot Games
