By Sagar Mankar 
Riot Games has officially revealed the locations for the League of Legends (LoL) international tournaments in 2025, marking an exciting year for esports fans.
During the Worlds 2025 Media Day, top executives from Riot Games met with the press to discuss the future of competitive League of Legends, including key announcements for the upcoming season.
A New Global Tournament: First Stand
One of the most anticipated changes for 2025 is the introduction of a new international tournament called “First Stand.” This event will allow fans to enjoy more cross-regional matchups and unique gameplay.
Each of the five main regions will send one representative team to compete, creating a highly competitive environment. Over six days, these 5 teams will face off in best-of-series matches, with one team emerging as the champion.
A standout feature of this new tournament is the “Fearless Draft” system. This format adds strategic depth by banning champions that were already picked in previous games of the series. This innovation encourages diverse gameplay and keeps matches fresh and unpredictable.
The inaugural First Stand tournament will be held after SPLIT1 from March 10-16, 2025, in Seoul, South Korea, at LoL Park.
Mid-Season Invitational Returns with New Hosts
The Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) 2025 will also see changes. While the First Stand tournament won’t directly impact MSI qualifications, the number of teams participating in MSI has been adjusted due to the reduction of competitive regions to five. Each region will send two teams, creating a lineup of 10 teams for the event.
In 2025, MSI will be hosted by Canada, a significant moment as it marks a return to live esports events in the country after a long break.
League of Legends World Championship 2025 in China
Looking ahead to the pinnacle event of the season, the League of Legends World Championship 2025 (Worlds 2025) will be held in China. Riot Games had previously hinted at this during the announcement of their extended partnership with Oppo.
The Grand Final will be hosted in Chengdu, a city that successfully held the 2024 MSI and drew significant attention from local and international fans.
This announcement follows the thrilling conclusion of Worlds 2024, where T1 secured victory over Bilibili Gaming in a nail-biting 3-2 series at London’s O2 Arena. T1’s win earned them their fifth championship title, cementing their legacy as the most successful team in League of Legends history. The 2024 event also shattered viewership records, reaching a peak of 6.94 million viewers, not including the substantial audience from China.
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