Riot Games Green Card Visa Sponsorship Jobs USA
Riot Games is a consistent Green Card sponsor in the Technology & Software space, supporting permanent residence for engineers, artists, designers, and technical specialists across its game development and publishing operations. If you're targeting a long-term career at one of gaming's most recognized studios, Green Card sponsorship is part of the package.
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Get Access To All JobsINTRODUCTION
Technology Research at Riot exists to give the company early conviction on technologies that could redefine how games are built and played. Our work spans Game AI, Next-Generation AI Games, and Foundational Models, and we combine frontier research with hands-on prototyping to shape Riot’s long-term future.
As Director of Research, you will be accountable for the performance, health, and long-term capability of a multi-disciplinary research organization spanning Research Scientists, Software Engineers, and emerging technical roles. You will build and lead the people systems that enable ambitious research to thrive.
You will report to the Head of Research and partner closely on organizational strategy. The Head of Research owns research direction, technical quality bar, and research bets. You own the organizational structure, staffing, performance systems, and talent development that enable that ambition to be realized sustainably and at scale. Together, you form a complementary leadership pair: one defining scientific direction, the other building and sustaining the organization that delivers it.
This is a full-time role based in Los Angeles, CA.
Responsibilities
Organizational Leadership, Talent Strategy & Performance
- Own end-to-end organizational effectiveness across Tech Research, including performance management, leveling, compensation calibration, and career development across multiple technical craft ladders
- Define and execute headcount planning and staffing strategy in partnership with Research and Technology leadership, aligning talent to long-term research ambitions and roadmap priorities
- Translate research goals and backlog into clear capacity and capability plans, making disciplined staffing decisions across pillars and technical disciplines
- Maintain a high bar for talent density, ensuring researchers and engineers consistently operate at Riot’s expected level of craft and impact
- Lead hiring, onboarding, development, and when necessary, performance management and exits with clarity and consistency
- Identify capability gaps and proactively build plans to address them through hiring, development, or structural changes
- Build scalable mentorship systems and strengthen team health, engagement, and sustainability across the organization
- Evolve technical career ladders to support both research innovation and the engineering rigor required to operationalize that work
Culture, Conflict & Craft Excellence
- Resolve interpersonal and cross-disciplinary conflicts with clarity, fairness, and strong judgment
- Foster a culture of intellectual rigor, constructive debate, and accountability
- Reinforce a high technical bar through structured feedback, calibration, and performance systems
- Build an environment where ambitious, exploratory research and hands-on engineering coexist productively
Strategic Partnership
- Partner with the Head of Research on organizational strategy and long-term planning
- Provide input into research prioritization discussions, ensuring organizational capacity aligns with technical ambition
- Partner with the Head of Research to define what 'Impact' looks like in a research context, ensuring performance systems reward both successful prototypes and valuable 'fast-failures'
- Surface talent risks, organizational friction, and scaling challenges early
- Ensure the research organization is structured to execute against evolving research bets
Cross-Organizational Leadership
- Represent Tech Research as the organizational leader of the function within broader Technology leadership forums
- Partner with central Talent, HR, and compensation partners to ensure rigorous calibration and leveling practices
- Collaborate with peer leaders across Riot to ensure Research is well-integrated and positioned for long-term impact
- Contribute to broader AI capability planning across Technology
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- 10+ years of experience in research, engineering, or technical organizations
- 4+ years managing senior technical ICs across multiple disciplines
- Experience leading AI/ML or frontier research organizations
- Demonstrated success leading performance management, compensation calibration, and leveling across different craft ladder
- Proven track record hiring and developing senior researchers and engineers
- Experience scaling or evolving a technical organization while maintaining a high quality bar
- Strong judgment in resolving conflict and navigating high-ambiguity environments
- Excellent communication skills across technical and executive audiences
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience managing hybrid research and engineering teams
- Experience building mentorship frameworks across multiple technical disciplines
- Background in game development, applied AI, or interactive systems
- Track record of improving organizational sustainability and performance in fast-growing technical teams
FOR THIS ROLE, YOU’LL FIND SUCCESS THROUGH
- Experience enabling technical leadership through aligned organizational execution
- Principled and fair leadership in moments of ambiguity
- High standards paired with empathy and accountability
- Strong partnership with technical leadership
- Building an organization that is ambitious, sustainable, and respected
For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise and a collaborative spirit that prioritizes the delight of players. We will look at your past studies and experience, but for this role, we also look for dedicated people with a personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this is the role for you!
OUR PERKS
Riot focuses on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy and other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.
At Riot Games, we put players first. That mission drives every decision in our quest to create games and experiences that make it better to be a player. Whether you’re working directly on a new player-facing experience or you’re supporting the company as a whole, everyone at Riot is part of our mission. And just like in our games, we’re better when we work together. Our goal is to create collaborative teams where you are empowered to bring your unique perspective every day. If that sounds like the kind of place you want to work, we’re looking forward to your application.
It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.
Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:
- Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data
- Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors
- Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks
- Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters
These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.
INTRODUCTION
Technology Research at Riot exists to give the company early conviction on technologies that could redefine how games are built and played. Our work spans Game AI, Next-Generation AI Games, and Foundational Models, and we combine frontier research with hands-on prototyping to shape Riot’s long-term future.
As Director of Research, you will be accountable for the performance, health, and long-term capability of a multi-disciplinary research organization spanning Research Scientists, Software Engineers, and emerging technical roles. You will build and lead the people systems that enable ambitious research to thrive.
You will report to the Head of Research and partner closely on organizational strategy. The Head of Research owns research direction, technical quality bar, and research bets. You own the organizational structure, staffing, performance systems, and talent development that enable that ambition to be realized sustainably and at scale. Together, you form a complementary leadership pair: one defining scientific direction, the other building and sustaining the organization that delivers it.
This is a full-time role based in Los Angeles, CA.
Responsibilities
Organizational Leadership, Talent Strategy & Performance
- Own end-to-end organizational effectiveness across Tech Research, including performance management, leveling, compensation calibration, and career development across multiple technical craft ladders
- Define and execute headcount planning and staffing strategy in partnership with Research and Technology leadership, aligning talent to long-term research ambitions and roadmap priorities
- Translate research goals and backlog into clear capacity and capability plans, making disciplined staffing decisions across pillars and technical disciplines
- Maintain a high bar for talent density, ensuring researchers and engineers consistently operate at Riot’s expected level of craft and impact
- Lead hiring, onboarding, development, and when necessary, performance management and exits with clarity and consistency
- Identify capability gaps and proactively build plans to address them through hiring, development, or structural changes
- Build scalable mentorship systems and strengthen team health, engagement, and sustainability across the organization
- Evolve technical career ladders to support both research innovation and the engineering rigor required to operationalize that work
Culture, Conflict & Craft Excellence
- Resolve interpersonal and cross-disciplinary conflicts with clarity, fairness, and strong judgment
- Foster a culture of intellectual rigor, constructive debate, and accountability
- Reinforce a high technical bar through structured feedback, calibration, and performance systems
- Build an environment where ambitious, exploratory research and hands-on engineering coexist productively
Strategic Partnership
- Partner with the Head of Research on organizational strategy and long-term planning
- Provide input into research prioritization discussions, ensuring organizational capacity aligns with technical ambition
- Partner with the Head of Research to define what 'Impact' looks like in a research context, ensuring performance systems reward both successful prototypes and valuable 'fast-failures'
- Surface talent risks, organizational friction, and scaling challenges early
- Ensure the research organization is structured to execute against evolving research bets
Cross-Organizational Leadership
- Represent Tech Research as the organizational leader of the function within broader Technology leadership forums
- Partner with central Talent, HR, and compensation partners to ensure rigorous calibration and leveling practices
- Collaborate with peer leaders across Riot to ensure Research is well-integrated and positioned for long-term impact
- Contribute to broader AI capability planning across Technology
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- 10+ years of experience in research, engineering, or technical organizations
- 4+ years managing senior technical ICs across multiple disciplines
- Experience leading AI/ML or frontier research organizations
- Demonstrated success leading performance management, compensation calibration, and leveling across different craft ladder
- Proven track record hiring and developing senior researchers and engineers
- Experience scaling or evolving a technical organization while maintaining a high quality bar
- Strong judgment in resolving conflict and navigating high-ambiguity environments
- Excellent communication skills across technical and executive audiences
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience managing hybrid research and engineering teams
- Experience building mentorship frameworks across multiple technical disciplines
- Background in game development, applied AI, or interactive systems
- Track record of improving organizational sustainability and performance in fast-growing technical teams
FOR THIS ROLE, YOU’LL FIND SUCCESS THROUGH
- Experience enabling technical leadership through aligned organizational execution
- Principled and fair leadership in moments of ambiguity
- High standards paired with empathy and accountability
- Strong partnership with technical leadership
- Building an organization that is ambitious, sustainable, and respected
For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise and a collaborative spirit that prioritizes the delight of players. We will look at your past studies and experience, but for this role, we also look for dedicated people with a personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this is the role for you!
OUR PERKS
Riot focuses on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy and other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.
At Riot Games, we put players first. That mission drives every decision in our quest to create games and experiences that make it better to be a player. Whether you’re working directly on a new player-facing experience or you’re supporting the company as a whole, everyone at Riot is part of our mission. And just like in our games, we’re better when we work together. Our goal is to create collaborative teams where you are empowered to bring your unique perspective every day. If that sounds like the kind of place you want to work, we’re looking forward to your application.
It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.
Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:
- Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data
- Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors
- Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks
- Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters
These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.
Job Roles at Riot Games
How to Get Visa Sponsorship in Riot Games Green Card Visa Sponsorship Jobs USA
Target technical and engineering roles
Riot Games's Green Card sponsorship activity is concentrated in software engineering, systems architecture, and technical operations. Roles requiring specialized domain expertise in game development or infrastructure tend to move through the Green Card process more reliably than generalist positions.
Ask about the sponsorship process during late-stage interviews
Raise Green Card sponsorship after an offer is on the table, not in early rounds. At Riot Games, the conversation typically happens during offer negotiation. Asking too early can signal you're prioritizing visa status over the role itself.
Understand that PERM timelines are long
The PERM labor certification process at any Technology & Software company takes one to two years before an I-140 is filed. At Riot Games, planning your visa runway from the start of employment gives you the clearest path to a completed Green Card application.
Look for roles in creative and production disciplines
Beyond engineering, Riot Games sponsors Green Cards for artists, producers, and technical designers with specialized skills. If your background is in game art, animation, or production, these departments are active hiring areas where sponsorship is a realistic outcome.
Use verified sponsorship data when searching
Not every Riot Games job listing will specify Green Card sponsorship. Migrate Mate surfaces verified sponsors so you can filter by real sponsorship history, helping you focus your applications on roles where sponsorship is an established practice at the company.
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Get Access To All JobsFrequently Asked Questions
Does Riot Games sponsor Green Card visas?
Yes, Riot Games sponsors Green Card visas for qualifying employees. The company supports permanent residence across technical, creative, and operational roles, primarily through the EB-2 and EB-3 employment-based categories. Sponsorship typically follows a period of employment on a nonimmigrant visa such as the H-1B or E-3, and is initiated by the employer rather than the employee.
Which roles and departments at Riot Games are most likely to receive Green Card sponsorship?
Software engineering, systems infrastructure, and technical art roles see the most consistent Green Card sponsorship at Riot Games. Creative disciplines including game design, animation, and production can also qualify when the role requires specialized skills. Generalist or business operations roles are less commonly sponsored, though exceptions exist depending on seniority and the specific team's hiring needs.
How do I navigate the Green Card application process at Riot Games?
Riot Games handles Green Card filings through its internal immigration team in partnership with outside counsel. The process typically follows the PERM labor certification route, where the company must conduct a supervised recruitment process before filing on your behalf. As the employee, your main responsibilities are providing documentation of your qualifications and staying current on your underlying nonimmigrant visa status throughout the process.
How long does the Green Card process take at Riot Games?
From the start of PERM labor certification to receiving a Green Card, the process typically takes several years. PERM itself can take one to two years, followed by the I-140 immigrant petition and then the final adjustment of status or consular processing stage. Your priority date and country of birth significantly affect the wait at the final stage, particularly for applicants born in India or China.
How do I find open Green Card sponsorship jobs at Riot Games?
Job listings rarely specify Green Card sponsorship explicitly, which makes it difficult to identify the right opportunities through standard job boards. Migrate Mate tracks verified sponsorship history by employer, so you can confirm that Riot Games actively sponsors before applying and focus your search on roles that align with your background. Targeting teams with a track record of sponsorship improves your odds considerably.
What is the prevailing wage for Green Card sponsorship at Riot Games?
Employers sponsoring a Green Card through the PERM labor certification process must pay at least the prevailing wage for the role. The Department of Labor determines this rate based on the specific job title, location, and experience level. The prevailing wage is locked in during the PERM filing and applies through the entire Green Card process. You can look up current rates using the DOL's OFLC Wage Search tool.
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