They subsequently invested close to $5M for the following competitive season, transitioning what was once community-led tournaments, into a structured professional league. The playerbase began to grow as Riot started engaging the players with consistent new patches, community engagement measures, and esports events. The goal for the two founders was to create a game that would continue to change with players, and not through sequels but through updates and a growing competitive environment.
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.

• Teams play a regular season, then a playoff bracket.
• Riot Games has continued to refresh League of Legends with regular updates and new champions, and furnishes additional thrills with global events and cross-media projects like “Arcane” which helped extend the League universe.
• Other regions followed immediately; the LCK would start in Korea, then the LPL would start in China.
• 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.
• Each professional League has a Regular Season followed by Playoffs, in which a select few of the top teams will advance to fight for regional titles and qualification for events like MSI and Worlds.
• Regardless of whether on PC or mobile the two versions embrace the same philosophy that is skill, teamwork, and strategy at all levels.

If you want to learn how pro teams “should” set up vision, push waves and play for soul, LCK games are almost textbook. Within a short time, this game became one of the most played titles in competitive gaming in the modern era, and the game helped shape a lot of today’s esports ecosystem. This is intended to stimulate competitive play and adapt the experience to be fresh, relevant and a facet of League of Legends, although it has not extended to other leagues yet. Most regional Leagues use a mixed format of Bo1 matches for the regular season, and Bo5 matches for the playoffs and finals.

LoL Esports LEC and ERL teams contract database

At the time, the free-to-play model was something new to offer – supported by the opportunity to purchase cosmetics – and it allowed LoL to grow rapidly. However, it was distinct almost immediately with fast-paced matches, unique characters, and the free-to-play model which implemented optional purchases for cosmetic items. League of Legends was developed by Riot Games, an American video game developer established in 2006 by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill in Los Angeles, CA. Without further ado, here’s our look betista casino login at the best champions to climb ranked in LoL Patch 26.03 in every role. This early-season update brought a large number of changes that shifted champion power levels across all roles, rewarding picks that can consistently pressure opponents, scale effectively, and snowball advantages into wins.

Competitive Structure

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.

Marcus Rashford and LOL Esports: How Football and Esports Are Bringing Generations Together

Wins or points obtained by the teams during the regular season help determine playoff seedings, where the top seeds will proceed by playing in an elimination playoff stage. During the Regular Season, teams compete in a round robin format to play against EVERY other team in their league. The Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) is League of Legends’ premier midseason international event where the best teams from every major region of League of Legends compete in the offseason between the Spring and Summer Splits. From ranked solo queues, up to the World Championship stage, League of Legends has a seemingly endless competitive identity that unites casual gameplay, professional sport, and mobile accessibility into one global system.
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.
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.
Every team plays through local splits and playoffs, hoping to earn enough points to reach the global stage. It introduced the world of Runeterra and champions such as Jinx and Vi, and contributed to the cultural impact beyond just the game. In addition, League of Legends transitioned from competitive esport game to storytelling by way of the Netflix runaway hit series, Arcane, also taking place in the League universe. Two benefits arose from this; franchises able to invest in their teams without worry, and the ability to build sustainable organizations— League of Legends had evolved into a true global sport. In 2013, Riot introduced the League Championship Series (LCS) in both North American and European regions, introducing player contracts and even packaging the competition with weekly broadcasts to culminate in a playoff stage. These initial tournaments transformed into events that ultimately would set the stage up for what would become an esports phenomenon around the world.

Gen.G steamroll T1 as Chovy outshines Faker

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.
We may still have one full day of games left to go, but the new-look Karmine Corp are already set to finish the 2026 LEC Versus Regular Season as the region’s #1 team. 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. Most regional regular seasons are played as best-of-one. Korean teams are famous for slow, controlled early games that explode into perfectly executed fights around dragons and Baron. By the time summer playoffs are done, each region has chosen the teams that will travel to Worlds.
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.

• International memes aside, NA still produces memorable storylines – from miracle lower-bracket runs to veteran players reinventing themselves on new rosters.
• Chovy, hailing from Gen.G, has maintained the capacity to continuously surpass himself and his opponents in lane control and teamfighting.
• 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.
• Most regional Leagues use a mixed format of Bo1 matches for the regular season, and Bo5 matches for the playoffs and finals.
• This is a question that could start an argument between fans, but it would be hard to argue against Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, the legendary mid-laner for T1 (formerly known as SK Telecom T1).
• Ranked matches place players into skill tiers—from Iron to Challenger—and mimic the structure of professional leagues.

Spring splits and MSI

Their core consists of mainly Spanish players, contributing to their identity as the “Spanish” team from Europe. However, certain regions – such as LPL and LCK, and most recently the LEC, has introduced Bo3 matches when playing in the regular season split. The victors of the playoff series will leave with the glory of a regional champion and the promise of pedigree to compete at an international event. The playoffs stage is the most entertaining part of every split, where teams will play in a Best-of-Five (Bo5) format for all the marbles. Competitive League of Legends employs a set event structure that looks to balance consistency and excitement in a professional league season.
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.
The more you watch with those levers in mind, the easier it gets to see why one team always feels a step ahead, even before the fights start. TheScore esports have made a video of some of the most iconic moments in LoL Esports. We have had some amazing and memorable moments in the League of Legends esports scene. According to Sheep Esports, Busio and Reapered are set to join Karmine Corp for the 2026 season…. In an epic five game World Championship 2025 T1 overcame KT to secure their 6th Worlds title – and… With Worlds 2025 off to a roaring start, we finally get an NA vs EU clash in Swiss with a playoffs…

Media: Busio and Reapered set to join KC in the LEC

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.
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.
Beyond that, there’s a whole ecosystem of other leagues across Latin America, Japan, Turkey, Oceania and more. International memes aside, NA still produces memorable storylines – from miracle lower-bracket runs to veteran players reinventing themselves on new rosters. You’ll see off-meta picks, creative flexes and funky level-one plans, especially in best-of-five playoffs where coaches have room to adapt drafts from game to game. A lot of the most entertaining series every year – base races, wild comebacks, 30-kill ADC games – come from the LPL.