2026 League of Legends World Championship
16th competition of the League of Legends World Championship
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The 2026 League of Legends World Championship is an upcoming esports tournament for the multiplayer online battle arena video game League of Legends, set to be held in the United States — in Los Angeles, California, Allen, Texas of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and New York City, New York, from 15 October to 14 November.[1] It will be the sixteenth iteration of the League of Legends World Championship, an annual international tournament organised by the game's developer, Riot Games.
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Sport | League of Legends |
| Location | United States |
| Dates | 15 October–14 November |
| Administrator | Riot Games |
| Host(s) | Los Angeles Allen, Texas New York City |
| Venue | 3 (in 3 host cities) |
| Teams | 19 |
It will be the United States' fifth hosting of the tournament, the fourth World Championship to be hosted in Los Angeles and the first since 2016, the third to be staged in New York City after the 2016 and 2022 editions, and the first international League of Legends competition to be held in the state of Texas. Nineteen teams will qualify based on placement within their regional leagues and results gained in the 2026 Mid-Season Invitational (MSI).
T1 of the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) are the three-time defending champions.[2][3]
Host selection
In a development update video published on 8 January 2025 to begin that year's competitive season, Riot Games announced that North America will host the 2026 edition of Worlds, with the United States being confirmed as the host country during the media day for the 2025 World Championship Final in Chengdu, China months later on 7 November 2025. Two cities were initially announced to host the tournament - Allen, Texas of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and New York City.[4][5]
In an interview days before the 2025 World Championship final, Global Head of LoL Esports Chris Greeley stated that the play-in and Swiss stages had been planned to be hosted at the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles, mirroring the setup of the 2024 World Championship held in Europe. However, fans had provided feedback that the Riot Games Arena in Berlin, which hosted the play-in and Swiss stages of the 2024 World Championship was too small. Citing budget and logistical capabilities, Riot decided to move both stages to a "bigger venue" in Texas.[6] On 22 March 2026, Riot announced that due to "logistical challenges," the play-in stage was moved back to the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles will host the play-in stage, while Allen will host the Swiss stage, quarterfinals, and semifinals. Los Angeles is the home city of the League Championship Series (LCS) and the Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) Americas, while Allen hosted the 2025 League of Legends Championship of The Americas (LTA) Championship Finals in September of the same year,[7] which was the only finals of the LTA after the announcement of its discontinuation after only one season. New York City will host the Final, becoming the first East Coast city to do so. It previously hosted the semifinals of the 2016 World Championship and the group stage and quarterfinals of the 2022 edition.[8]
Venues
Three venues will be used for the tournament. In an article posted by Riot Games on 8 January 2026 to begin the said year's competitive season, it was announced that the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas, a northern suburb of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, would host the play-in, Swiss stage, quarterfinals and semifinals. The event center hosted the 2025 LTA Championship finals, one of three weeks of the 2019 Overwatch League Homestand, and the 2024 Call of Duty League Championship.[9][10] During the finals of the 2026 First Stand Tournament in São Paulo, Brazil on 22 March 2026, Riot Games announced that the play-in stage would instead be hosted in the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles, the home studio of the League Championship Series (LCS).
The Barclays Center in Brooklyn, one of New York City's five boroughs, will stage the finals. The arena hosted the inaugural Overwatch League Grand Finals in 2018 and multiple editions of the ESL One New York Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament.[5][11]
| United States | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles, California | Allen, Texas | New York City, New York | ||
| Play-in stage | Swiss stage | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals |
| Riot Games Arena | Credit Union of Texas Event Center | Barclays Center | ||
| Capacity: 300 | Capacity: 8,100 | Capacity: 19,000 | ||
 |
 |
 | ||
Qualification
As the top two performing regions at the 2026 Mid-Season Invitational, the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) and the League of Legends Pro League (LPL) will qualify four teams to the tournament, including the winners, Hanwha Life Esports, provided that they reach the playoffs of their region's third split. The League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC), League Championship Series (LCS), and the League of Legends Championship Pacific (LCP) will have three directly qualified teams, while the Campeonato Brasileiro de League of Legends (CBLOL) will qualify two teams.
CBLOL was initially allotted one slot for the tournament. The initial announcement was met with criticism from local fans, citing CBLOL teams' performances against LCS teams during the 2025 LTA playoffs and the 2026 Americas Cup. The league was awarded another spot in the World Championship on 22 March 2026.[11][12]
This will be the first World Championship to feature teams from the LCS and CBLOL since the 2024 edition, following the split of the League of Legends Championship of The Americas (LTA) region in September 2025.[13]
Qualified teams
Team Secret Whales of the LCP became the first team to qualify for the tournament on 2 August 2026 by securing enough championship points to finish at least in the top three in said category. Days later, Bilibili Gaming of the LPL confirmed its slot in the event, also through assuring of at least a top two finish in championship points. On 15 August, 2026 Mid-Season Invitational winners Hanwha Life Esports of the LCK officially qualified for the World Championship through its qualification for the LCK Playoffs. Between 22 and 29 August, the LCP became the first region to complete its slate of qualified teams, with MVK Esports and CTBC Flying Oyster qualifying for the tournament. Defending world champions T1 and Gen.G confirmed their qualification on 1 September, with Dplus KIA completing the list of the LCK's representatives at the tournament three days later.
On 5 September, G2 Esports and Karmine Corp became the first two qualified teams from the LEC. On 12 September, Anyone's Legend confirmed its qualification from the LPL. On 17 September, Top Esports of the LPL secured their spot in the tournament.
The teams that qualified for the event are:
| Region | League | Qualification Path | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting from Swiss stage | |||
| Brazil Southern Latin America |
CBLOL | Split 2 Champion | TBD |
| South Korea | LCK | Season Champion | Gen.G |
| Season Runner-Up 2026 Mid-Season Invitational Winner |
Hanwha Life Esports | ||
| Season 3rd Place | T1 | ||
| Season 4th Place | Dplus KIA | ||
| Asia-Pacific | LCP | Split 3 Champion | Team Secret Whales |
| Split 3 Runner-Up | CTBC Flying Oyster | ||
| North America Northern Latin America |
LCS | Summer Champion | TBD |
| Summer Runner-Up | TBD | ||
| EMEA | LEC | Summer Champion | TBD |
| Summer Runner-Up[a] | G2 Esports | ||
| China | LPL | Split 3 Champion | Anyone's Legend |
| Championship Points | Bilibili Gaming | ||
| Regional Qualifiers 3rd Seed Playoff Winner | Top Esports | ||
| Regional Qualifiers 4th Seed Playoff Winner | TBD | ||
| Starting from Play-in stage | |||
| Brazil Southern Latin America |
CBLOL | Split 2 Runner-Up | TBD |
| Asia-Pacific | LCP | Championship Points | MVK Esports |
| North America Northern Latin America |
LCS | Summer 3rd Place | TBD |
| EMEA | LEC | Summer 3rd Place[a] | Karmine Corp |
Format
Following the expansion of the tournament to 19 teams, the format was changed. Four (4) teams will qualify for the play-in stage, which is a double-elimination best-of-five bracket. The winner of the play-in stage will qualify for the tournament's swiss stage. Sixteen (16) teams compete in the Swiss stage, where the first eight (8) teams to achieve three (3) wins will advance to the knockout stage, which is a single-elimination bracket. All matches in the knockout stage are expected to be best-of-fives.
The World Championship is expected to use the Fearless Draft format, where champions that have been played by either team become unavailable for both teams for the remainder of the series. Fearless Draft is expected to be used for all best-of-3 and best-of-5 series during the World Championship.
Notes
- Lowest possible seed