The 2026 League of Legends World Championship (also known as Worlds 2026) is the main event of the esports season, where the best teams in the world compete for the Summoner's Cup. This year's tournament theme is "This is our moment". With this slogan, Riot Games focuses primarily on the players, viewers, and the entire massive ecosystem of the game.
The offline tournament takes place in the USA, with matches hosted in Los Angeles, Allen, and New York. The competition began on October 15 and will run until November 14, 2026. The total prize pool is $5,000,000, for which 19 teams are competing. The winner will receive 20% of the total sum ($1,000,000), and the runner-up — 16% ($800,000). A total of 96 players are represented at the tournament, with the largest representation coming from South Korea (39%), followed by China (16%) and Vietnam (11%). All matches are played on patch 26.20.
The championship format is divided into three key stages. The Play-In stage concluded on October 18; the matches were held in a Bo5 Double Elimination bracket using Fearless Draft. The winner of this stage was Karmine Corp, successfully qualifying for the next phase. This phase is the Swiss Stage (October 23–26 and 28–31), where 16 teams will compete over five rounds. To advance to the playoffs, a team must secure three wins, while three losses mean elimination from the tournament. Elimination and advancement matches are played in a Bo3 format with Fearless Draft, while all others are Bo1. The decisive Knockout Stage will take place on November 3–8 and 14 under a Single Elimination system, where all matches will be played in a Bo5 format with Fearless Draft.
The first round of the Swiss Stage kicks off on October 23 at 20:00 EEST with a match between Gen.G Esports and Invictus Gaming.
All matches will be broadcast live and free of charge on the official LoL Esports channels on Twitch and YouTube, as well as on lolesports.com. Additionally, from November 12 to 14, as part of the lead-up to the grand final, the Worlds Fan Fest will be held at Pier 36 in Lower Manhattan.
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