League of Legends has three official international tournaments per year, as well as a number of other endorsed tournaments. What does each one of them represent, what is its level, when does it take place? Here is your go-to guide to have all international LoL tournaments explained.
| Tournament | Time of the year | Duration | Teams (latest edition) | Importance | Debut year | Riot-organized? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Stand | March | 1 week | 10 | First international of the year to give a glimpse of how the regions stack up | 2025 | Yes |
| Mid-Season Invitational | June-July | 2 weeks | 11 | Second biggest international, has high legitimacy | 2015 | Yes |
| Esports World Cup | July | 5 days | 16 | While it has the same teams as MSI, the format, short-term, and controversies make most fans dismiss it | 2024 | No |
| Asian Games | September (every 4 years) | Several days | 15 (national teams) | Strong national importance, but little legitimacy in esports due to the participation of national teams | 2018 | No |
| World Championship | October-November | 1 month | 18 | The most important LoL tournament, whose results eclipse all others | 2011 | Yes |
| Esports Nations Cup | November | 1 week | 32 (national teams) | Lowest due to the use of national teams | 2026 | No |
Since 2025, Riot Games has hosted three international LoL tournaments a year, going up in size and in prestige as the season advances.
First Stand is the first international tournament of the year, with a prize pool of $1,000,000. As a young event, the format of this tournament isn’t set in stone yet.
First Stand is a compact one-week tournament where the best team of each region fights for the first title of the year. The best regions get to send one additional team.
First Stand is held in March. Teams qualify to this tournament by winning the Winter split of the season.
First Stand is the newest official international LoL tournament. Image source: Christina Oh / Riot Games
Introduced in 2015, MSI takes place in the middle of the year as the second biggest international tournament. Originally of smaller size, MSI is now an event where the two best LoL teams of each region fight for the trophy and a prize pool of currently $2,000,000.
Since 2023, MSI has featured a play-in stage leading to a double-elimination bracket between the remaining eight teams. With the double elimination and every match being a best-of-five, the weaker teams are quickly left behind, and each of the later matches features two top-tier contenders.
Representatives qualify to MSI at the end of the Spring split, either by reaching the finals of the split or by winning in the corresponding qualifiers. The Mid-Season Invitational is less memorable than Worlds, but is prestigious, nonetheless.
The World Championship is the crowning jewel of LoL Esports, the tournament everyone has their eyes on. After the Summer Split, the three to four best LoL teams of each region go to Worlds – every player’s goal throughout the entire year. At Worlds, the teams compete in a Swiss stage followed by the Knockout stage.
With single-elimination playoffs, the rules of Worlds are simple: Rise to the occasion to overcome every step. There are no second chances here, one single shot to be crowned the best LoL players in the world.
Teams participate to Worlds between October and November of each year in the hopes of claiming the Summoner’s Cup and the lion’s share of the 5 to 10 million-dollar prize pool. Most of all, the winner of Worlds engraves their name in history and designs commemorative skins to their image.
The winners of the other events, on the other hand, are mostly overlooked in comparison. The LoL World Championship is also the event on which fans place the largest bets, across all esports.
The League of Legends World Championship is the biggest international LoL tournament. Image source: Yicun Liu / Riot Games
Beyond the tournaments organized by Riot, there are some others across the year. However, the community doesn’t recognize them with the same legitimacy.
The EWC is a tournament hosted in Saudi Arabia. Debuting in 2024, this tournament takes place once a year around July and is a multi-esports event. In League of Legends, it features the current top 2-4 teams from every region, with a format changing over the years.
While the EWC regularly has a format that leaves fans questioning its competitive value, the event offers a hefty prize pool, in the millions of dollars.
Similarly to the EWC, the ENC is a multi-esports tournament hosted in Saudi Arabia, this time in November. The Esports Nations Cup will have its first edition in 2026, and it will oppose national teams instead of regional ones.
The Asian Games is another multi-sports event. This time though, this is a tournament for Asian athletes, recognized by the International Olympic Committee. Running every four years, the Asian Games has included a League of Legends category since 2018. In this tournament, each country sends a national team made up of the best players of its population.
Read also: League of Legends Player Count in 2026
Once the most prestigious non-Riot tournament and the stage for xPeke’s famous backdoor, the IEM stopped operating in League of Legends in 2017. Since 2011 and until then, the IEM held several tournaments per year, culminating in a World Championship that welcomed the best teams in the world.
Some of the most memorable plays across all international LoL tournaments took place at IEM. Image source: ESL
The All-Star events were LoL tournaments that ultimately failed to find their identity. Starting in 2013, All-Stars began as a tournament hosting both high-stakes games and showmatches. On one side, 1v1 matches followed by URF in 2014; on the other, regular 5v5.
In 2015, the serious matches became the Mid-Season Invitational, and All-Star fully leaned into the showmatch aspect. Displaying eight separate game modes, this was the golden age of the tournament. The appeal of the tournament was watching the best pro players in the world display their skills in fully goofy settings, like playing in tandem.
In 2017, All-Star started including many more pro players from minor regions. In 2018, Riot began adding streamers. With some pros growing tired of participating and the biggest names becoming diluted, the interest dwindled over time. 2020 ended up being the final edition of All-Star.
All International LoL Tournaments Explained: All-Star Paris in 2014. Image source: Riot Games
Rift Rivals was a yearly short tournament held between 2017 and 2019, to add more matches between rival regions. The Western RR opposed EU and NA, while the Eastern one welcomed the LCK, LPL, LMS, and later VCS. Following mixed feedback, inconvenient logistics, and low viewership, Riot did not renew the tournament after 2019.
Featured image source: Colin Young-Wolff / Riot Games
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