by Riot Games has revealed more information about the dates and format for the 2022 League of Legends World Championship. The event, which is scheduled to be held across several venues in North America, will commence on September 29 and will run through to November 5.
Although the teams are yet to be announced, Riot has approved two more slots, bringing the total number of participants to 24 compared to last year’s 22. The Chinese (LPL), European (LEC), and Korean professional League (LCK) will all have four representatives in the tournament.
LEC gained one extra slot because the Russian professional League (LCL) will not be able to send a representative this year. The North American LCS will follow closely with three slots.
The Pacific Championship Series (PCS) and Vietnam Championship Series (VCS) will each have two slots, while the remaining leagues will each have one slot.
Of the 24 total teams, only 12 will get direct seeding to the group stage from their respective leagues. The remaining twelve will have to secure their group stage berths through the play-in round, of which four will advance to the group stage.
According to a release from Riot Games, the teams will be distributed in the following manner:
Play-in teams
● China (LPL) – 4th Seed
● Korea (LCK) – 4th Seed
● Europe (LEC) – 3rd and 4th Seed
● North America (LCS) – 3rd Seed
● Southeast Asia (PCS) – 2nd Seed
● Vietnam (VCS) – 2nd Seed
● Brazil (CBLOL) – 1st Seed
● Japan (LJL) – 1st Seed
● Latin America (LLA) – 1st Seed
● Oceania (LCO) -1st Seed
● Turkey (TCL) – 1st Seed
Group stage teams
● China (LPL) – 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Seeds
● Korea (LCK) – 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Seeds
● Europe (LEC) – 1st and 2nd Seeds
● North America (LCS) – 1st and 2nd Seeds
● Southeast Asia (PCS) – 1st Seed
● Vietnam (VCS) – 1st Seed
As earlier stated, the event will commence on September 29 with the play-in round. That stage will take place in Mexico City’s Arena Esports Stadium and will end on October 4.
The group stage will be held at the famous Madison Square Garden in New York City from October 7 to October 16. MSG will also host the quarterfinals fixtures, which will run from October 20 to October 23. State Farm Arena in Atlanta will host the two-day semifinals.
The month-long tournament will culminate with a best-of-5 grand final on November 5. The event will take place at Chase Center, the home of the 2022 NBA Champions Golden State Warriors.
Every team will be fighting for a piece of the $2.2 million prize pool, and bragging rights in what is the biggest League of Legends event annually.
From late August, some of the leagues would have been played to a conclusion, meaning fans will start to get an idea of what teams will be participating and their seeding. By August 14, majority of the leagues will be done with their Summer group stage matchups, and will be heading to the all-deciding playoffs.
