Recently, NRG Esports has made things interesting once again as the 2023 LCS Championship winners, solidifying themselves in the Americas League while also providing the tri-state competitive sense of self back to the area. In Europe, G2 Esports have had the largest impact on the global scene as the most successful team in League of Legends European Championship (LEC) history. Their explosive style of play and depth of roster led to them being crowned runner-ups at the 2024 World Championship, and had several domestic titles to their credit as well.
Extra global events: EWC and First Stand
That’s why you’ll often hear casters talk about “the meta” – it’s the evolving set of strategies and champions that teams are trying to master before the next big tournament. That means that we now know all the 12 teams who will be playing in the inaugural LEC Versus split. Seventeen teams from five regions battled for the Summoner’s Cup and a staggering one million dollar prize… Riot Games has set up systems such as Honor rewards, chat filters, and reporting systems, to encourage players to have positive interactions and reduce toxicity in the community.
The yearly LoL esports calendar
It is fitting that MSI would be hosted in Korea — Korea has been the host to some legendary competitions, particularly as it is the home of some of the notable teams (T1 and Gen.G) in the esports world. Once players reach the professional level, the structure of competition starts to take a little more formality. At DreamHack 2010 in Sweden, the first event included just eight total teams and a $100,000 prize pool – which is significantly smaller than the events that take place today, which boast multi-million dollar prize pools. Because everything is tied to patch changes, the game you see at Worlds might look very different from the one you saw at MSI, even though the teams are the same.
Taking place in the middle of summer during 2026, we can expect nothing less than a clash between the best teams in the world, and a re-telling of the most storied international rivalries. It occurs each fall, in a host country, and brings together the best teams in the world to compete for the Summoner’s Cup and a multi-million dollar prize pool. The League of Legends World Championship, commonly referred to as Worlds, is the final event of the professional League of Legends season. While it is completely separate from League of Legends, Wild Rift is another competitive “circuit,” and has its own tournaments and the Wild Rift League (WRL) in China that is backed by Riot for competitive play. Wild Rift offers the same strategic depth and 5-on-5 gameplay as the original League of Legends on PC while creating matches that are shorter and faster, designed for touch screen controls. As the audience of esports grew, Riot Games worked to allow access to the game beyond PC.
League of Legends soon became more than a game — it brought in a brand new era of esports. With a current record of 8-2 and a favorable head-to-head against the next-best team — NAVI — KC will arrive in playoffs as the number one seed for a chance to come away with their second LEC trophy. It keeps schedules fast and introduces plenty of upsets – a single bad draft or level-one can cost even a top team the game.
Every League of Legends Worlds winner from 2011 to 2024, along with the region that lifted the Summoner’s Cup. The controversial owner of X has made a post saying that he wants his AI, known as “Grok”, to beat “the best human team” in League of Legends in 2026. If you want one place to check who is playing for who in China, this is it.
Bookmark this hub for reliable League of Legends esports coverage all year round La Gazzetta dello Sport covers thousands of live events through its multi-platform news system. The newspaper, published on pink paper, sells over 400,000 copies daily (more on Mondays when readers want to catch up on the weekend’s events), and can claim a readership in excess of three million.
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- Riot and the regional leagues also share highlights, interviews and short-form content on social channels like LoL Esports on X and the LoL Esports Instagram.
- In other words, ranked play feeds the talent pipeline, and professional leagues are the key to funneling and transforming that individual skill into a team-based structure and competition that is showcased to millions.
- Together, these two videos give you a crash course in the plays everyone references whenever a new “insane” moment happens on stage.
- Because everything is tied to patch changes, the game you see at Worlds might look very different from the one you saw at MSI, even though the teams are the same.
- La Gazzetta dello Sport covers thousands of live events through its multi-platform news system.
- We have had some amazing and memorable moments in the League of Legends esports scene.
In other words, ranked play feeds the talent pipeline, and professional leagues are the key to funneling and transforming that individual skill into a team-based structure and competition that is showcased to millions. Ranked matches place players into skill tiers—from Iron to Challenger—and mimic the structure of professional leagues. That’s when LoL esports stops feeling like a random collection of games and starts feeling like a long, interconnected season you genuinely care about following.
Teams play a regular season, then a playoff bracket. Every competitive match is played on a specific patch. Matches run on the same client and champions you know from ranked, but they stay locked to specific patches for competitive integrity. The LPL 3rd seed has taken down G2 in four games to advance to the Worlds 2025 semi-finals. Wang Ho Han, better known to League of Legends fans around the world as Peanut, has officially announced his retirement from professional play. The championship began on October 14 and concluded on November 9, taking fans on a road trip across China.
Their attendance at Worlds reflects the growth and sustainability of the League of Legends Japan League (LJL), something that is starting to breed more competition within the region. Another first happened this year in the Pacific region, as DetonatioN FocusMe (DFM) became the first Japanese team to make it past Play-Ins and to attend the Worlds 2024 Swiss Stage. Cloud9 remains one of the region’s most loved team, always consistently shocking the viewers in their international appearances, while also maintaining a strong investment in homegrown talent. Under the greatness of Faker, they have reigned over several eras and generations consistently by integrating the veteran leadership and newer players into their system each and every year.
Elon Musk wants Grok 5 to play against the “best human team” – T1 is “ready”
Before a team ever sets foot on an international stage, it has to survive its home league. It’s the event pro players talk about when they say “I want to win everything.” G2 Esports players lifting the 2019 Mid-Season Invitational trophy.
Players like Ruler and Chovy personify the vision and precision of modern competitive gaming. As of 2025, these are the names that occupy the forefront of the game’s legacy — shaping its past and driving its future. In each instance, every match is played on the most recent version of the patch, one week after its release.
- The blend of the assorted match formats of Bo1 consistency and Bo5 drama is the appeal of why competitive League of Legends is cited as one of the most strategic, engaging and busiest esports spectacles in the world.
- With its deep competitive ecosystem, growing culture, and millions of devoted fans, League of Legends will likely endure the life-cycle of entertainment even if other entities fail.
- During the Regular Season, teams compete in a round robin format to play against EVERY other team in their league.
- Every competitive match is played on a specific patch.
- Over the ten years since its release, League of Legends has remained one of the world’s most popular and recognizable titles in esports.
- If you want a documentary-style tour of those plays, theScore Esports put together a longform video called “The Most ICONIC Moments in League of Legends History”.
Each region’s Tier 1 league (i.e. LCK, LPL, LEC) runs in seasonal “splits,” with weekly matches, playoffs, and qualification points as a lead up to international competitions, such as the Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) and Worlds. It starts with regional leagues that fill the calendar all year long and ends with the biggest show in the scene — the World Championship. Each league resulted in a distinct identity, professionalism and fan culture in each of the competitive regions.
Whether you’re climbing the ranked ladder or following pro play, LoLNow delivers expert insights and practical tips to help you improve and stay ahead. Stay updated with patch notes, meta shifts, champion guides, tier lists, and esports news. Together, these two videos give you a crash course in the plays everyone references whenever a new “insane” moment happens on stage. If you want a documentary-style tour of those plays, theScore Esports put together a longform video called “The Most ICONIC Moments in League of Legends History”. That’s where side betista casino login selection, adaptation and mental stamina become just as important as mechanics. Playoffs and international events almost always switch to best-of-five series.
Once you understand the basic structure – regional leagues feed MSI and Worlds, patches shape the meta, best-of-fives decide champions – it becomes a lot easier to enjoy individual games. It ties together regional leagues and global events, and lets you jump straight into live games or VODs. Each region plays seasonal splits where teams fight for playoff spots and championship points. League of Legends Esports rests upon the foundation of its five Tier 1 professional regional leagues, that comprise the global competitive ecosystem. The best amateur players slowly work their way up these high-ranked ladders or semi-pro circuits, or are spotted in regional scouting programs, before finally having the opportunity to join an academy team or professional roster.
The League of Legends World Championships is the yearly event that culminates the professional LoL season of play. Historic moments within League of Legends history — from Faker’s mystery plays and G2’s international runs — have created a shared history of esports experiences that parallels other sporting events. Having attended multiple Worlds Finals, MSI finals and several LPL championships under his belt, his style of play always has fans waiting for more, as he uses unique champion picks and lane dominance to prove his worth. Bin is known as one of the staple players from the LPL, as he stands tall as the best toplaner in the region. PSG Talon has cemented a place at the top for a Pacific region team, having made consistent appearances at Worlds with consistent high aggression, to begin the game. Team Liquid made a name for themselves in the North American esports sphere by winning 4 LCS championships and even making a run to the MSI Finals in 2019.