Riot Games reveals Worlds 2025 format details

Riot Games has unveiled details of the format being used at the League of Legends World Championship 2025.

This year’s edition of the season-ending tournament will be split into three stages and features Fearless Draft.

Ahead of the tournament, which begins on October 14th, Riot Games has shared more information on how teams will earn a place in the knockout stage.

Worlds 2025 begins with the Play-In stage that features the fourth seeds from the top two performing regions. The LCK’s T1 and the LPL’s Invictus Gaming will compete in a single-elimination best-of-five series to determine which one advances to the Swiss stage.

Taking place in Beijing, China, the Swiss stage sees 16 teams competing across five rounds to determine which ones qualify for the Knockout stage. Teams that score three wins advance to the next stage, while teams that lose three matches are eliminated.

The first round of matches will be decided by the seeding of each team. Teams from the same region will not be drawn against each other. From the second round, teams that played each other in round one will not face off again, but teams from the same region can be drawn together.

The first two rounds of the Swiss stage will be a best-of-one series, while rounds three, four, and five will be best-of-three.

Teams that qualify for the Knockout Stage will compete in a single-elimination best-of-five bracket. Those with a 3-0 record from the Swiss stage will compete against a team with a 3-2 record in the first round. The remaining teams will be matched regardless of their record.

From the Knockout stage, the two remaining teams will head to Chengdu to compete in the Grand Final, where a best-of-five series will determine this year’s League of Legends World Champion.

Ahead of the event, ESI’s Worlds 2025 preview takes a closer look at the event, including details on the teams competing and how fans can tune into the action.