Team Vitality Shuts Down LoL Academy Team After Nine Years

Team Vitality announced on Friday, October 9, that it is shutting down Vitality.Bee, its League of Legends academy team. The decision brings an end to nine years in Europe's regional leagues (ERLs), although the French organization has not ruled out returning to the development scene in the future.

The announcement comes at a difficult time for Europe's regional League of Legends ecosystem. With Vitality.Bee's departure, only five of the ten LEC organizations still field teams in the ERLs.

Team Vitality Leaves the Door Open for an Academy Return

In a video released by the organization, Team Vitality CEO and co-founder Fabien "Neo" Devide explained that the decision reflects the current state of the competitive ecosystem. According to Neo, Vitality wants to see how the regional leagues develop before committing to another investment.

"It will take a little more time for the ecosystem to evolve and reach a point where we are satisfied and can invest in it again."

Neo stressed that developing young talent remains one of Vitality's core priorities. He also looked back on the players who came through its academy system and went on to compete in the LEC over the past nine years.

One example is Kaan "Naak Nako" Okan. Signed by Vitality in December 2023, the top laner spent a season with the academy roster before earning a promotion to the main team. He retained his place on Vitality's LEC lineup for 2026.

Despite that track record of developing players, Neo believes the current conditions do not justify maintaining an academy roster. Vitality plans to follow developments across the regional leagues before deciding whether to return.

Vitality.Bee Reached the EMEA Masters Final in 2024

Team Vitality has competed in Europe's regional circuit for nine years, although its academy roster adopted the Vitality.Bee name in 2019. The organization has been part of the LFL since the league's inception, with one of its academy team's biggest achievements coming at EMEA Masters Summer 2024.

Vitality.Bee reached the grand final of the European tournament but fell 3-1 to BDS Academy. The all-French final saw two LFL representatives finish as the tournament's top two teams.

A Difficult Final Season for Vitality.Bee

The team now departs after a less successful campaign. In the 2026 LFL Summer Split, Vitality.Bee finished eighth out of ten teams, missing the playoffs.

Questions about the academy's future had emerged well before the announcement. In 2025, Vitality explored a potential merger with BDS Academy to share resources and reduce operating costs. According to Sheep Esports, the two organizations reached an agreement, but Riot Games ultimately blocked the project over competitive integrity concerns.

French League of Legends Scene Faces an Uncertain Future

Vitality.Bee's closure is the latest in a series of departures affecting the LFL. Webedia, which operated the French league for years, has decided to step away, leaving the competition's structure for 2027 uncertain.

Another established organization, Ici Japon Corp. Esport, also announced that it was shutting down its operations this week. According to Sheep Esports, half of the teams that competed in the 2026 LFL Summer Split have now confirmed they will not return next year.

Riot Games removed the requirement for LEC organizations to operate academy teams in 2022. Since then, each organization has been free to decide whether to continue investing in the regional leagues.

Sheep Esports also reports that the current licensing cycle for regional league organizers runs through the end of 2027. Any changes to the structure of these competitions will depend on future decisions from Riot Games.

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Featured image credit: Team Vitality

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