From October 15 to November 14, 2026. The Play-In is in Los Angeles, the Swiss and knockout stages are in Allen, Texas, and the Final is in Brooklyn, New York.

T1 won, beating KT Rolster 3-2 in Chengdu, China, on November 9, 2025. They are the defending champions.

Where can I watch Worlds for free?

Riot streams it on Twitch, YouTube, TikTok and lolesports.com. You can also find live streams on Oggo.

How many teams play at Worlds 2026?

19 teams from six regions qualified. Four of them play the Play-In, and the winner joins 15 other teams in the 16-team Swiss stage.

How does the Swiss stage work?

Teams play five rounds against opponents with the same record. Three wins qualify a team for the knockouts and three losses eliminate it.

LoL Esports Guide: Worlds 2026 Schedule, Teams and Where to Watch

League of Legends has one of the biggest esports scenes in the world. Regional leagues lead to international events, and the season ends with the World Championship, known as Worlds. Worlds 2026 runs from October 15 to November 14 in the United States. This guide explains how the pro season works, how the Worlds format works and who qualified. Facts were checked on October 10, 2026. Schedules can change, so confirm times on the official LoL Esports site or on our LoL tournaments page.

Key takeaways

Worlds 2026: October 15 to November 14, with the Play-In in Los Angeles, the Swiss and knockout stages in Allen (Texas) and the Final in Brooklyn (New York).
19 teams from six regions qualified. One Play-In team joins 15 others in the Swiss stage.
The 2026 season had First Stand (March), MSI (June and July) and Worlds.
Defending champion: T1, who beat KT Rolster 3-2 at Worlds 2025.
Matches stream free on Riot's channels. See our viewing guide for times and links.

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How the pro season works

Regional leagues start in January: LCK (Korea), LPL (China), LCP (Asia Pacific), LEC (Europe, Middle East and Africa), CBLOL (Brazil) and LCS (North America). Each league is its own competition, with its own teams, split schedule and playoffs. The best teams from each region earn places at the international events.

The 2026 international events were First Stand and the Mid-Season Invitational (MSI). First Stand took place March 16 to 22 in Sao Paulo, and Bilibili Gaming beat G2 Esports 3-1. MSI was held in Daejeon, South Korea, and Hanwha Life Esports beat Bilibili Gaming 3-2 in the final on July 12. Worlds is the last and biggest event of the year, and it decides the world champion and the Summoner's Cup.

Worlds 2026 schedule at a glance

Stage	Dates	Place
Play-In	Oct 15 to 18	Los Angeles
Swiss stage	Oct 23 to 31	Allen, Texas
Knockout (quarterfinals and semifinals)	Nov 3 to 8	Allen, Texas
Final	Nov 14	Brooklyn, New York

The dates are US dates. For viewers in Korea and Singapore, many matches fall on the next calendar day. Venue names in press coverage are Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles, the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen and the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, though sources do not all assign each venue to each stage in the same way.

The format, step by step

Play-In

Four teams play a best-of-five double-elimination bracket: the second seed from CBLOL, plus Karmine Corp (LEC), Cloud9 KIA (LCS) and MVK Esports (LCP). Matchups come from a random draw after the CBLOL final on October 10. Only one team advances.

Swiss stage

Sixteen teams play five rounds. The system pairs teams with the same record. Three wins send a team to the knockouts. Three losses end its run. Most games are best-of-one, but matches that decide qualification or elimination are best-of-three. Repeat matchups are not allowed, and teams from the same region cannot meet in round one.

Knockouts

Eight teams play a single-elimination bracket: four quarterfinals, two semifinals and the Final. Every series is best-of-five. After the Swiss stage, the two teams that finished 3-0 each face a team that finished 3-2, and the other four teams are paired by a random draw.

Qualified teams

Region	Teams
LCK (Korea)	Gen.G, Hanwha Life Esports, T1, Dplus KIA
LPL (China)	Anyone's Legend, Bilibili Gaming, Top Esports, Invictus Gaming
LEC (EMEA)	G2 Esports, Movistar KOI, Karmine Corp (Play-In)
LCS (North America)	Team Liquid Alienware, LYON, Cloud9 KIA (Play-In)
LCP (Asia Pacific)	Team Secret Whales, CTBC Flying Oyster, MVK Esports (Play-In)
CBLOL (Brazil)	LOS and FURIA (seeding set after the CBLOL final on October 10)

The Korean and Chinese leagues send four teams each, which is why many fans see Worlds as a battle between the two. Gen.G, Hanwha Life Esports, T1 and Anyone's Legend are the top seeds named in coverage. We do not predict a winner: Worlds has produced surprises before.

History in short

T1 won Worlds 2025, beating KT Rolster 3-2 in Chengdu, China, on November 9, 2025. Coverage describes this as T1's third title in a row, after Worlds 2023 and 2024. Worlds returns to North America for the first time since 2022.

Where to watch

Riot streams Worlds free on its official channels on Twitch, YouTube and TikTok, and on lolesports.com. Extra regional channels cover other languages. The official Worlds anthem, "Know My Name" by True Damage, premiered on October 8.

Know My Name ft. True Damage (Official Music Video) | League of Legends Worlds 2026 Anthem · YouTube

Common mistakes when following Worlds

Mixing up dates. Asia sees many matches one day later than the US dates.
Expecting the Swiss stage to work like groups. Teams are re-drawn every round by record.
Trusting a team list from September. CBLOL seeding was only set on October 10.