META High School Esports 2020 Roadmap

The META High School Esports League is set to return with competitions in League of Legends, Rocket League, and more, starting with a preseason tournament in March, before the league itself kicks-off in April.

First off the bat for new and returning competitors is the League of Legends preseason tournament, complete with exhibition matches alongside former Oceanic Pro League stars, streamed matches, and more. This early tournament will be held on March 21-22 and 28-29.

After that first hit-out, META’s main leagues return for the year. LoL tournaments are set to begin on Tuesday, April 21 in Victoria and Tuesday, April 28 for New South Wales, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia, and the ACT and Northern Territory.

League of Legends

The League of Legends tournaments will be inter-regional swiss competitions, with all games played kicking off from 5pm on matchday. All matches within the swiss section of the competition will be played online.

After the league play is concluded, the top four teams will immediately proceed to the playoffs, which will be online, single-elimination best-of-three matches. The top two teams from this round will proceed to the Regional Finals.

The Regional Finals will be played on a Saturday and will be played in-person at a LAN event, with the venue of the finals to be determined. Each team will play one best-of-three series in a seeded tournament, with winners moving onto the Championship Rounds.

There, each regional champion will play in a double-elimination bracket across two Saturdays, before the final two schools enter the  Championship Grand Final. The best-of-five decider will be played at a LAN event as well, with the venue TBD.

The LoL tournament also has Riot Points and in-game skin prizes for top teams in each division, as well as state championship medals. Schools that qualify for the Division 1 nationals stage will also have flights and travel to the Championship Grand Final event covered.

League of Legends Key Dates

• Season starts: April 21 (VIC), April 28 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT)
• Regional tiebreakers: June 9 (VIC), June 16 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT)
• Regional playoffs: June 16 (VIC), June 23 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT)
• Regional finals: July 4 (VIC), July 18 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT)

Rocket League

Rocket League is also set to start in April, with registrations closing on Wednesday, 8th. The competition is then expected to begin on Thursday, April 23 in VIC and QLD, while all other states and territories begin a week later.

The competition will be played in regional leagues, within a swiss format. Each game day will begin from 5pm every Thursday, dependent on region. All league play will be online, with teams expected to log into their matches. All games will be best-of-three.

After the league play is concluded, the top four teams will immediately proceed to the playoffs, which will be online, single-elimination best-of-three matches. The top two teams from this round will proceed to the Regional Finals.

The Regional Finals will be played on a Saturday and will be played in-person at a LAN event, with the venue of the finals to be determined. Each team will play one best-of-three series in a seeded tournament, with winners moving onto the Championship Rounds.

There, each regional champion will play in a double-elimination bracket across two Saturdays, before the final two schools enter the  Championship Grand Final. The best-of-five decider will be played at a LAN event as well, with the venue TBD.

Rocket League Key Dates

• Registrations close: April 4 (all tournaments)
• Season starts: April 23 (VIC, QLD), April 30 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT, NZ)
• Regional tiebreakers: June 11 (VIC, QLD), June 18 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT. NZ)
• Regional playoffs: June 18 (VIC, QLD), June 25 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT, NZ)
• Regional finals: July 4 (VIC, QLD), July 18 (NSW, TAS, SA, WA, ACT, NT, NZ)

While League of Legends and Rocket League are both full steam ahead for the 2020 META High School Esports League, there will also be other video game titles set to be included in the nation-wide competition, to be announced soon.