Louis Vuitton Partner with Riot Games on League of Legends Championship
Louis Vuitton is venturing into the world of e-sports, announcing a partnership with Riot Games, the makers of multiplayer game League of Legends. As part of the deal, Vuitton will be making the trophy travel case for the 2019 Summoner's Cup - the trophy awarded to the League of Legends world champions, considered the most prestigious prize in e-sports. Additionally, Louis Vuitton’s womenswear artistic director Nicholas Ghesquière will be designing unique champion skins - which change the appearance of a player's avatar - and a capsule collection that will be announced as the League of Legends 2019 World Championships approach.
During his tenure at Louis Vuitton, Ghesquière has already established an interest in gaming, having already cast Lightning from Final Fantasy XIII as a Spring/Summer 2016 campaign face. Louis Vuitton, of course, create trophy cases for long-running sports events like the FIFA World Cup and the French Open, but this is their first foray into creating pieces for e-sports. Speaking to leagueoflegends.com, chairman and CEO of Louis Vuitton Michael Burke said, "The League of Legends World Championship is not only the climax of the tournament: it’s where the world of sports and entertainment come together in celebration of new legends to be born. Louis Vuitton has long been associated with the world’s most coveted trophies, and here we are today, alongside the Summoner’s Cup. We are thrilled to be part of such an iconic event."
Moschino also has shown an interest in getting in on gaming fashion, releasing a The Sims capsule in August 2019 that comprised both IRL product and in-game clothing for players' Sims to wear. And given the rise of clothing brands - where designs don't physically exist, but are Photoshopped onto consumers' photos instead - could we see more digital-only collections from the major houses? Only time will tell.