Season 2020 has been a turning point for the Rainbow Six Esports circuit; we introduced dedicated competitive structures for our 4 main regions - Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America -- with strong national programs feeding into the global circuit, a new season-long global race towards a qualification to the Six Invitational based on new point system, and finally, we launched R6 SHARE, a new milestone for the sustainability of our ecosystem.

2020 has also been more challenging than what any of us could have ever imagined. We had to adapt and adjust on the fly and we have learned a lot from this past year. Now our eyes turn to Season 2021 which will launch in March. We are eager to implement the plans we envisioned to the full extent of their potential, to improve them based on last year's learnings and to enjoy again LAN international competitions soon.

You will find below a full update on Season 2021, including awaited news on our plans for the delayed Six Invitational 2021!

AN UPDATE ON THE SIX INVITATIONAL 2021 & THE MAY 2021 SIX MAJOR

We are thrilled to announce that the Six Invitational 2021 will happen in May 2021. It will replace the Season 2021 Six Major of May. The 20 teams currently qualified for the Six Invitational will retain their slot and the prize money of the event will remain unchanged, with a prize pool cap set at USD $3,000,000.

We are still finetuning our plans and hope to come back soon with more details around exact dates and location, but in the meantime, here is some information around the required adjustments that we will be implemented to make this happen.

February Transfer Window & roster changes

The rules currently in place in the Rainbow Six Circuit Global Rulebook cater to multiple objectives of fairness and competitive integrity. When it comes to teams playing at the Six Invitational, one of our intentions is always to ensure that the players who contributed to qualify an organization to the Six Invitational, whether at the end of the last Major of the season, or after the Six Invitational open qualifiers, are the ones competing at the Six Invitational for this organization.

Under the current circumstances however, with the Six Invitational being postponed to May 2021, we acknowledge the need for organizations to make changes to their rosters during the off-season Transfer Window (from February 22nd to March 7th) in preparation of the 2021 Season starting in March.

With those considerations in mind, we are authorizing all organizations qualified (through the Global Standings or open qualifiers) to the Six Invitational 2021 to transfer players during the 2021 off-season Transfer Window in accordance with the rules currently established in the Global Rulebook. If an organization qualified to the Six Invitational 2021 decides to release one of their player, or to transfer a player to an organization that won't be competing at the Six Invitational in May, then said organization must compensate the player that helped them qualify, with a portion of the prize money the team will earn during the Six Invitational.

May 2021 Six Major prize money and Global Points distribution

The prize money of the Six Major initially planned for May 2021, as well as the Global Points qualifying to the Six Invitational 2022, will be awarded to teams from all 4 regions based on their performance during Stage 1 of Season 2021. All 4 regions will distribute USD $125.000 (a quarter of the $500.000 Six Major prize money) as follows:

• 1^st place: $62,500
• 2^nd place: $31,250
• 3^rd place: $18,750
• 4^th place: $12,500

The top 8 teams of each region at the end of Stage 1 will be awarded the following amounts of points for the Global Standings:

• 1^st place: 510
• 2^nd place: 390
• 3^rd place: 330
• 4^th place: 275
• 5^th place: 225
• 6^th place: 180
• 7^th place: 140
• 8^th place: 115

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE SEASON 2021 REGIONAL LEAGUES

Since we launched our very first competitive program in 2016, we've been dedicated to adjusting and improving our Esports programs year after year. This is only possible thanks to the feedback we received from the entire community: players, organizations, casters and fans. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and feedbacks on our leagues. You will find below the updates coming to Season 2021.

AN UPDATE ON THE GLOBAL CIRCUIT

Draws are out

We have decided to eliminate the draws and bring back the overtimes. Instead of ending games with a tie, matches will be decided through best-of-3 overtimes.

Extended rosters

We want to facilitate the organizations' ability to compete at both Regional and National levels, by allowing them to have 2 distinct rosters. Therefore, organizations will now be able to have up to a total of 12 players under their banner, with up to 7 players registered for each specific roster. Any roster must count a minimum of 5 players and each roster can be supported by its own dedicated coach. Once a roster is registered, it is locked until the next Transfer Window. More details about the practical application will be communicated at a later date.

Coaching timeout

Coaches will be given the opportunity to pause the game and discuss the strategy with their players. More details on the practical application are coming soon.

Overtime scoring

A regular win is rewarded with 3 points while a loss gives 0 point. When the two teams fight up to the overtime, the winner gets 2 points while the loser gets 1 point.

Update on the tiebreakers

In case two teams have the same number of points in the regional standings, a new set of tiebreakers will apply, in the following order, to determine who qualifies to the Six Majors:

• Head-to-head: whoever had better results in head-to-head matchups will qualify

• Round difference: whoever had a better round differential throughout the stage will qualify

• Match Win percentage: whoever had a higher victory percentage throughout the stage will qualify

• Round win percentage: whoever had a higher round win percentage will qualify

• Tiebreaker match: If after all these filters there is still no winner, a special match will be organized to determine which teams qualifies for the Major.

european league 2021

Competitive format

The format of the competition will remain the same: an online round robin with Best-of-one matches.

Competitive Calendar

For 2021, we have decided to spread the 9 playdays over 7 weeks instead of 5, with only one match per week for each team, on Mondays, starting at 6PM CET. This will give the teams more time to prepare for their match.

The last two playdays will be played on a weekend, on the 7^th week; a special occasion that will bring an extra dose of excitement as the teams define their final stage ranking in an all-or-nothing showdown.

Stage 1 calendar adjustments

To leave room for the Six Invitational 2021, the calendar for Stage 1 has been adjusted.

Stage 1 of the European League will kick off on March 18^th at 6PM CET.

Where to watch

• English: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6
• English: YouTube
• Spanish: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6ES
• Spanish: YouTube
• French: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6FR
• French: YouTube
• German: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6DE
• German: YouTube
• Italian: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6IT
• Italian: YouTube
• Polish: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6PL
• Hungarian: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6HU
• Russian: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6RU
• Portuguese: Twitch.tv/R6esportsBR2

Challenger League update

Finally, we are going to revamp the online qualifiers for the Challenger League.

We will have 3 open tournaments spread until the end of the summer, granting points and prize money to the participating teams. The top 5 teams across all 3 tournaments will join in the Group Stage the 9 National League winners, and the 2 season 2020 relegated teams, making the European Challenger League a 16-team competition in 2021.

In the Group Stage, the 16 teams will be split into 4 groups of 4 teams, with the top 2 teams of each group advancing to the Playoffs.

The Playoffs will gather 8 teams, competing in a double elimination bracket played in Best-of-3.

north american league 2021

With the merger of the US and Canada Divisions, 10 teams will be joining us for the 2021 Season of the North American League. The 2021 Season will be broken down into 3 Stages and will be played offline at The Esports Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The health and wellbeing of our pro players, partners and staff is our main priority, which is why, throughout the season, we will be working diligently to ensure the set up and respect of strict sanitary measures.

Competitive format

With a new year, comes a new format. We've heard the feedback from our community and are confident this new format will uphold the highest level of competitive integrity and elevate the viewership experience.

In order to maintain consistency between the regions, all North American League matches will be played in a Round Robin, Best-of-one format with overtime.

Competitive calendar

Each stage will consist of 9 playdays over a 7-week period. There will be one playday per week, with 5 matches taking place each day while being aired on Wednesdays at 4pm ET / 1pm PT. The 7^th and final week will be the Super Week, which will consist of 3 playdays back-to-back from Tuesday to Thursday also at 4pm ET / 1pm PT.

Stage 1 calendar adjustments

For Stage 1, there will be 9 Playdays over the timespan of 5 weeks. There will also be one Super Week at the end of the Stage. Starting, March 24th, five matches will take place every Wednesday at 4 PM EDT/1 PM PDT. This will give all teams the same amount of time to prepare for their upcoming match.

The Super Week takes place during week 5 where there will be 3 back-to-back, action filled days of Rainbow Six Siege Esports to determine the final standings of the Stage. The Super Week will broadcast matches from Tuesday -- Thursday.

Where to watch

• English: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6
• English: Twitch.tv/R6EsportsNA
• English: YouTube
• Portuguese: Twitch.tv/R6esportsBR2

Challenger League update

With the merger of the US and Canada Challenger Leagues, the North American Challenger League will now be an 18-team league. There will be 14 playdays over the timespan of 7 weeks. Teams will play in a Round Robin, Best-of-one format with overtime.

More information regarding the North American Challenger League and Qualifiers will be shared soon.

latin-american league 2021

Competitive format

In 2020, the Latin-American League had the addition of two brand-new divisions: Mexico and Latin America South. Together with the Brazil Division, this formed a triad of online tournaments resulting in the complete Latin-American Regional League for Rainbow Six Siege. After using the round robin system and Best-of-two format for Season 2020, we have decided to adjust and improve the format for next season.

For the 2021 Season, the LATAM League will maintain its 3-division structure, but will change its competitive format to Best-of-one matches during the regular stage in each division.

The three divisions will be organized as follows:

• Brazil Division: will remain with 10 teams;

• Mexico Division: changing from the 2020 structure, it will now have one more team, reaching a total of 8 participants;

• Latin America South Division: will remain with 8 teams from Argentina, Peru and Chile;

In addition, each division will have its respective Challenger and Open Leagues continuing the work of training new talents across the whole region and serving as the gateway to the elite of competitive Siege in Latin America.

At the end of each stage, the best teams from each division advance to the LATAM League Stage Finals, a tournament that will give the top 4 teams the chance to qualify for one of the most prestigious Rainbow Six Siege tournaments in the world, the Six Major.

Participating teams

Competitive Calendar

For 2021, each division -- Brazil, Mexico and Latin America South -- will have 2 playdays per week over 4 weeks, with an additional 5^th week for Brazil featuring 3 playdays, named "Super Week".

• Brazil Division playdays will happen on Saturdays and Sundays;

• Mexico Division playdays will happen on Saturdays and Sundays;

• Latin America South Division will happen on Thursdays and Fridays;

Stage 1 of the Brazil will kick off on March 20^th, while Stage 1 of the Latin America South Division will start on March 19^th and Mexico Division on March 21^st^.

Where to watch

• Portuguese: twitch.tv/R6esportsBR
• Portuguese: youtube.com/R6esportsBR
• Spanish: twitch.tv/Rainbow6LATAM
• Spanish: YouTube
• Brazil Division - English: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6
• Brazil Division - English: YouTube

asia-pacific league 2021

Competitive format

In Season 2020, we managed to merge the 4 local Pro Leagues into one Asia-Pacific League, composed of multiple layers: the North Division and the South Division (composed of the Oceanic Nationals and the South Asia Nationals). From what we've learned last season, we feel that there are still too many discrepancies between the sub-regions, therefore we have decided to simplify the structure.

For Season 2021, the Asia-Pacific League will still be divided into 2 divisions, but this time, each division will gather 8 teams and will have the exact same format: an online round robin with Best-of-one matches.

• The North Division will be composed of the 8 teams located the northernmost of the region, meaning mostly teams from Japan, South Korea and South East Asia.

• The South Division will gather 8 teams located the southernmost of the region, meaning from South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

In addition of these 2 divisions, we will continue to organize a series of Open Tournament in South Asia, the South Asia Nationals, to offer up-and-coming teams the opportunity to hone their skills and reach the worldwide stages.

At the end of a stage, the top-ranking team in each division will be automatically qualified for the Six Major, based on the regional league point system.

The teams ranking 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th in each division will be joined by the 2 best teams from the South Asia Nationals, to decide who will get the 2 remaining slots for the Six Major in a special weekend of Playoffs.

The 8 teams participating in the Playoffs will face off in a double elimination bracket. All matches up until the semifinals will be played in a Best-of-1; from then on, including the semifinals themselves, matches will be played in Best-of-3.

Competitive Calendar

For 2021, each division -- North and South -- will have 1 playday per week over 7 weeks.

• North Division playdays will happen on Wednesdays, starting at 6PM SGT

• South Division playdays will happen on Thursdays, starting at 6PM AEDT/AEST

Stage 1 calendar adjustments

To leave room for the Six Invitational 2021, the calendar for Stage 1 has been adjusted.

Stage 1 of the South Division will kick off on March 18^th at 6PM AEDT while Stage 1 of the North Division will start on March 19^th at 6PM SGT.

Where to watch

• English: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6
• English: YouTube
• Japanese: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6
• Japanese: YouTube
• South Korean: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6KR
• South Korean: YouTube
• Thaï: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6TH
• Mandarin: Twitch.tv/Rainbow6TW

R6 SHARE update

All organizations meeting the eligibility criteria in both the North and South Divisions of the Asia-Pacific League will be included in the R6 SHARE program, an initiative aimed at supporting their development in the long run.

Don't miss anything about Rainbow Six Esports by following us on Twitter on @R6esports, @Rainbow6Game, Instagram and on our website.