To Mr_Slin and whoever else is all about LAN this and LAN that.
I have been around the TF community for longer than anyone else you can find. Not talking about TF2, I am talking about Quake and Quakeworld from 1996. I have been part of mostly every major league from MPlayer to QWTF to Quake 3 Fortress to Enemy Territory Fortress as a player and league organizer and I can tell you that the "community" does not live or die based off 4 teams going to a F'ing LAN.
If the players today can't find a reason to compete at the highest levels for nothing other than "going to LAN" then I am proud to say I played with the best TF players ever back in the days of QWTF. Back then we played for pride and for constantly getting better. The best prize we got was a full IRC channel.
You may not know me at all and that is fine. I'll stroke my own online genitals because back then I was the ego labeled "Invite" player for like 10 years straight. I have seen how this situation plays out over and over with every league and every TF community. The main thing keeping a competitive community alive is a stable and well organized league. It has NOTHING to do with offering a LAN. Nothing at all.