If I were to promote clans and make them more relevant, I would approach it like this:
Host tournaments you sign up for as a clan with various formats throughout the year. Some potential ideas:
- Mixed event BO5, where the first two rounds are 4v4s, then a 2v2, and then 1v1s if needed.
- Rating restricted (<1400) 1v1 tournament.
- 4v4 rating restricted tournament.
- Rating unrestricted Master's Cup style 2v2.
- Rating restricted BO7 "winner stays on"/"all kill" style 1v1 tournament.
Placing in these events will award points according to some distribution; the points collected, as well as placement in events, will be highlighted on a leaderboard. Placement in 1v1 events can contribute points to the leaderboard but to a lesser extent. The top clan for each quarter of the year could get a unique temporary avatar as long as they maintain their spot, get a spot in the news page, etc..
The mix of events will ensure that it's not just the clans who have the best top players that will dominate, but rather the clans that are most active and have the most diverse set of players that will top the leaderboard.