Karmine Corp would be in the LEC right now if it wasn’t for greed

With the European Master tournament over and the World Championship underway, most of the European League of Legends scene is looking to make deals.

It’s an open secret at this point that French powerhouse, Karmine Corp, are trying to get into the LEC. They were first rumored to be interested in the Shalke 04 spot that Team BDS purchased and seemingly haven’t stopped trying ever since. The publicity of their intentions has drawn a lot of competitors to come out of the woodwork, and drive the price up to new heights. The price tag that Heretics paid for the Misfits slot broke the market, and the deal KOI and Rogue made took it a step further.

Karmine Corp willing to trade shares for LEC spot

If you weren’t sure how desperate KC are for getting into the LEC, now you know. Despite their meteoric rise in popularity followed by success and profitability, Karmine Corp still probably don’t have enough capital to buy a LEC spot. The 40 million mark is hard to reach for most organizations in the esports industry, let alone for one created 2,5 years ago. During that time, they haven’t gone public on the stock market nor have the two founders sold some of their shares to investors.

Considering that everything they have achieved so far has been under the shadow of the global pandemic, funds of that magnitude are not easy to come by. Reports say there were discussions of Astralis giving their LEC spot to KC in exchange for shares within the French organization. This would be a similar deal to the one KOI and Rogue made, without Karmine Corp raising the money. An alternative solution that has been proposed was Astralis loaning their LEC spot for a fixed period and a fixed price. The issues that emerge here are pretty obvious. 

Are Karmine Corp greedy, cheap, or not advised financially?

Nobody knows how realistic that is legally and in Riot’s regulations. Nobody can deny that Karmine Corp entering the LEC competition would be a win for all parties included, but when it comes to the bargaining table with chips made of promises, a deal is hard to manufacture. Karmine Corp acquired a VCT slot to the EMEA regional league through franchising, so Riot is well aware of their inner workings and finances.

This deal is definitely increasing the org’s value and playing to their advantage here, but nothing is forcing Astralis management to take a risky leap of faith on Karmine Corp. If they can’t settle on a deal on how much potentially 30% of KC shares would be worth, they won’t be in the LEC next year. With the founders of KC trying to capitalize on the hype without making sacrifices on profit margins, they might hurt their brand in the process. Unlucky for them, the market has already been established. And with their intentions being public knowledge, nobody is going to budge until they pay the price.

Karmine Corp in the LFL

If the deal does come through, reports say Karmine Corp are looking to form an All-French roster. Names like Hans Sama, Saken, cabochard, Vetheo and many other have been floating around for quite some time now. Regardless of what happens, KC will be a part of the LFL next year. While most players are contractually obligated until November or are on vacation right now, Karmine Corp have already started tryouts for their LFL roster. Players like Febiven, Lurox, Zanzarah, Jezu and Melonik among many others, have already participated in those tryouts.

Header: Twitter/ Karmine Corp