Chapter 410: After the Finals
The venue of the S1 World Finals echoed with unending applause and cheers.
Although the audience hadn't directly participated in this S1 World Finals, as players of *League of Legends*, everyone felt a sense of pride that the game's competition had garnered so much attention and influence.
Chen Mo announced in a loud voice, "The *League of Legends* S1 Global Finals have now concluded. Everyone, we'll see you at S2!!"
The scene erupted once again in fervent applause and cheers, with many spectators shouting.
"See you at S2! Keep the championship trophy here next year!"
"Go NRG!!"
"Chen Mo is awesome!"
"Xiao Hei, smile at the camera!"
Amid the cheers of the audience, Chen Mo stepped down from the stage, leaving this moment of glory to the five team members on stage.
With that, the *League of Legends* S1 World Finals came to a perfect close!
...
After the match, all the players were still immersed in the excitement of winning the S1 Finals. It was foreseeable that this had become a grand celebration for all *League of Legends* players, and the buzz from this Finals would likely last at least another month or two.
Some minor anecdotes from the S1 Finals also sparked heated discussions among players.
For instance, when NRG's jungler, Jiang Hao, was interviewed after the match, the reporter asked him what his first feeling was after winning the championship. Jiang Hao actually said, "The trophy is too heavy!"
Many netizens looked it up and found that this trophy actually weighed thirty kilograms. No wonder Jiang Hao found it heavy—even five people struggled to lift it!
A thoughtful netizen also noticed a small detail when NRG was lifting the trophy. Jiang Hao was the first to rush to the trophy and try to lift it, but after one attempt, the trophy didn't budge at all!
Fortunately, the other team members quickly came over to help lift the trophy together, so this moment wasn't noticed by too many people.
But this small detail was still spotted by a caring netizen and sparked heated discussions online.
"Haha, Jiang Hao is so cute. His first reaction to winning was that the trophy was too heavy?"
"Yeah, this trophy was really well-made this time. Thirty kilograms? No wonder Xiao Hei couldn't lift it. With his small frame, he'd probably throw his back out if he actually tried!"
"Didn't you see how carefully those five people lifted the trophy? If it had crashed to the ground with a 'clang,' the trophy might not have been damaged, but the stage would definitely have gotten a dent!"
"Impressive. I have to say, this S1 Finals really had top-tier style. When it comes to showing off, I only respect Chen Mo!"
"Chen Mo: I'm not targeting anyone, but when it comes to showing off, none of you here can beat me!"
"A domestic team winning the championship—so satisfying! Time to play a couple of rounds!"
...
On major forums, posts about NRG winning the championship were increasing rapidly. A large number of *League of Legends* players were discussing this newly crowned team, talking about the latest tactics and signature champions they used in the Finals.
On various streaming platforms, dedicated live rooms for the S1 Finals were still running, looping NRG's championship journey, with hundreds of thousands of viewers watching daily.
On video websites, all sorts of footage related to NRG's championship was being released and gaining high popularity. Even mundane content like NRG's daily training, solo matches, and meals at their base had players talking with relish.
The heat from this event was far higher and more enduring than anyone had imagined.
Many players all expressed: Not enough, we want to see more!
As a competitive game, *League of Legends* matches were highly entertaining. For some players, watching the matches was even more enjoyable than playing the game themselves.
For example, some extremely difficult champions, like Anivia or Riven, were impossible for regular players to master. But in matches, professional players could use them to dominate and pull off incredibly precise plays.
When watching matches, many players felt a sense of identification with the teams or players they supported. After a win, they experienced a strong sense of satisfaction.
So, many players were saying, if only the Finals happened every month!
Of course, other players quickly countered: Finals every month? That's unrealistic from every angle, and if it really happened every month, there wouldn't be as much anticipation.
However, once a year was indeed too long. Players were still hoping for more small-scale tournaments domestically, so they could continue watching their favorite teams and players.
Their wishes were soon fulfilled.
After the Finals, Chen Mo announced two major pieces of news.
"To celebrate NRG's championship, all skins for the champions used by NRG in this Finals will be on a week-long celebratory sale, at 50% off the original price. Additionally, during this week, all summoners will receive double gold and double experience rewards. Furthermore, the official team will create a set of exclusive championship skins for NRG."
"Also, all major regions will begin establishing the *League of Legends* professional league system. The current four major regions—the domestic region LPL, the North American region LCS NA, the European region LCS EU, and the Korean region LCK—will collaborate with local esports organizations to build a lasting tournament system. Starting from S2, matches in each major region will be the sole pathway to the Global Finals."
At the same time, on the *League of Legends* official website, details about the leagues were being released, including team rosters, schedules, promotion and relegation rules, and World Championship slots.
Many viewers also noticed that the LPL would officially kick off early next year, right at the venue of this Finals, the Yuan Da Plaza in Mo Du.
"Just said we hadn't seen enough, and now there's a league?"
"Awesome! Just a few more months and there'll be matches to watch, and it's a league that runs all year long? Seamlessly connecting to next year's S2 World Finals?"
"Impressive! Chen Mo had this all planned out, a combo move?"
"Wow, all the skins for champions NRG used are half off? Damn, when did Chen Mo suddenly become so generous?"
"Upstairs, you're really naive..."
"But I'm more curious about NRG's exclusive championship skins. I wonder what kind of skins Chen Mo will make for these five guys."
"Yeah, championship skins have so much prestige! When we play a five-man black team and everyone uses their own skin, the show-off factor would be earth-shattering!"
"My wallet is already itching! As long as NRG's exclusive skins are well-made, I'll buy them no matter what!"
"Yeah, after all, it's a domestic team. We have to support them!"
After this World Finals, even the popularity of *League of Legends* kept rising. Metrics like active players and payment data all showed very significant improvements.
The S1 Finals themselves were essentially the most effective form of promotion. Whether it was the venue, the trophy, the participating teams, the number of viewers, or the record-breaking prize pool, everything signaled to players that *League of Legends* was a game constantly developing and improving, and it was highly likely to become the most popular competitive game of the time, bar none.
And this attracted even more players into the embrace of *League of Legends*.