Riot Games bets on Fearless Draft for the competitive season 2025

Riot Games has made a groundbreaking decision to maintain the champion selection and banning system known as Fearless Draft for the remainder of the 2025 competitive season. This new format not only influences the dynamics of individual matches but also has a significant impact on best-of-three series, allowing for a more varied and strategic approach.

The changes that Fearless Draft will bring

With the Fearless Draft, each champion can only be chosen once per series, ensuring the appearance of at least 30 different champions in matches that take place over three maps. This change aims to encourage adaptability among players and diversity in selections, something highly praised by the community, which has responded positively both on social media and in viewer retention in competitions like the LCK and the LEC.

Although powerpicks exist in the competitive scene, their use has notably decreased compared to previous seasons. A clear example is the champion Azir, whose selection has dropped from 24 to just 14 in the matches played, allowing for greater rotation of characters and compositions within the game.

The Fearless Draft, implemented at the start of this season, represents a strategic change that Riot has been seeking for a long time, considering that the last significant modification to the selection system dates back to 2017. During the international tournament First Stand, which brings together the best teams in the world, this new system has been very well received, suggesting a possible path towards the continuation of this format in future championships, including international events such as the Mid Season International and the Worlds.

However, not all members of the community share the same opinion. While some professionals, like Caedrel, praise the new system as a revolution in the field of esports, other critics, like commentator Jamada, express their discontent, arguing that this change may sacrifice competitiveness for the sake of entertainment. The discussion will continue as teams adapt to this new competitive environment.