Riot Games revealed the important dates to take note of for the 2026 League of Legends Esports season, which kicks off later this month in the United States, Brazil, South Korea, China, Asia Pacific, and Europe.
South Korea’s LCK and China’s LPL begin on Jan. 14, Asia-Pacific’s LCP opens Jan. 16, Europe’s LEC and Brazil’s CBLOL officially launch Jan. 17, and the United States’ LCS league returns on Jan. 24.
Then in March, the first major event of the LoL esports calendar, First Stand, takes place from March 16 – 22, in São Paulo, Brazil, live from the Riot Games Arena. Eight teams will compete in the event: two teams from LCK, two teams from LPL, one team from LEC, one team from LCS, one team from LCP, and one team from CBLOL.
Later in the year, the 2026 League of Legends World Championship will return to North America: Worlds 2026 will be hosted at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas for the Play-Ins, Swiss Stage, Quarterfinals, and Semifinals, while the Worlds Final will be hosted in New York City.
Finally, Riot announced that it is removing regional split prize pools in Global Revenue Pool regions and redirecting those funds into “more impactful areas.” Prize pools for international events such as First Stand, MSI, and Worlds will continue to be funded by the GRP.
More details including some format changes and the return of some fan favorite events, can be found in the LCS blog.