Ubisoft folds R6 Canadian Division into US league

Ubisoft announced big changes to the way Rainbow Six Siege’s North American League (NAL) will function this afternoon.

The Canadian Division (CAD) will be folded into the U.S. Division (USD) to create one unified North American League.

The move comes at a dire time for North American Rainbow Six Siege since organizations are leaving the scene left and right. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Evil Geniuses and Luminosity left. And under the new licensing pseudo-franchised system, the rosters lost their spots in professional play as well. This cycle was repeated again in the fall when eUnited and Tempo Storm left the scene.

Reciprocity left early in the spring as well but managed to find an organization willing to buy their license and roster: Oxygen Esports. Oxygen has qualified for the Six Invitational and is considered one of North America’s top-four teams.

While this move bolsters the NAL in terms of new blood, there are still pressing questions. How will the Canadian organizations and players possibly be able to make the move or have the money to move to Las Vegas, where the LAN-based NAL is held? Will the rule where four-fifths of a Canadian roster had to be of Canadian origin hold up when there are oodles of talented NA free agents on the market?

Right now, there are five NAL teams qualified for the lucrative Six Invitational: DarkZero Esports, Spacestation Gaming, Oxygen Esports, and TSM from the former USD, as well as Altiora from the former CAD.