2024 League of Legends World Championship

The 2024 League of Legends World Championship was an esports tournament for the multiplayer online battle arena video game League of Legends. It was the fourteenth iteration of the League of Legends World Championship, an annual international tournament organised by the game's developer, Riot Games. The tournament was held from 25 September to 2 November in Berlin, Paris, and London. It marked the fifth time Europe has hosted the tournament, having held the event in 2011, 2015, 2019, and 2021.[a] Twenty teams qualified for the event based on placement within their regional leagues and results gained in the 2024 Mid-Season Invitational (MSI).[2]

2024 League of Legends World Championship
Tournament information
SportLeague of Legends
Location
  • Germany
  • France
  • England
Dates25 September–2 November
AdministratorRiot Games
Host(s)Berlin (play-ins, swiss stage)
Paris (quarterfinals, semifinals)
London (Final)
Venue(s)3 (in 3 host cities)
Teams20
Final positions
ChampionsT1
Runner-upBilibili Gaming
Tournament statistics
Attendance14,700 (Finals)[1]
MVPLee "Faker" Sang-hyeok (T1)
← 2023
2025 →

The finals took place on 2 November at The O2 Arena in London, where T1 of the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) successfully defended their title after defeating Bilibili Gaming of the League of Legends Pro League (LPL) 3–2 to win the organization's record-extending fifth World Championship.[3][4]

Qualification

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The League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) and League of Legends Pro League (LPL) will have three directly qualified teams to the Swiss stage, while the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) and League Championship Series (LCS) will have two directly qualified teams. The 2024 Mid-Season Invitational champion, Gen.G, earned automatic qualification to the Swiss stage,[b] also counting as the additional seed for the LCK. The LPL, as the runner-up region, also earned an additional spot. Four teams from the play-in stage will also qualify to the Swiss stage.[2][5]

Eight teams qualified for the play-in stage: The top two teams of the Pacific Championship Series (PCS) 2024 Summer playoffs, the top two teams of the Vietnam Championship Series (VCS) 2024 Summer playoffs, the third place teams in the LCS Championship and LEC Season Finals, the Campeonato Brasileiro de League of Legends (CBLOL) 2024 Split 2 champion, and the Liga Latinoamérica (LLA) 2024 Closing Split champion.

This will be the final World Championship where teams from the PCS and VCS qualify for the tournament individually, as they will merge (alongside the League of Legends Japan League (LJL) and League of Legends Circuit Oceania (LCO)) to form a new Asia-Pacific league in 2025 called League of Legends Championship Pacific (LCP).[6] Additionally, the LCS, CBLOL and LLA will be merging under the newly formed League of Legends Championship of The Americas (LTA), which has separated North (LTA North) and South (LTA South) Conferences held in three different splits, with each split held with different formation such as double-elimination tournament and even the "Pick & Play" system that allows teams to select their opponents.[7]

The following tables show qualified teams and their respective qualification paths:[8]

Region League Qualification Path Team Pool
Started from Swiss Stage
South Korea LCK Summer Champion Hanwha Life Esports 1
Championship Points Gen.G[c] 2
Regional Finals Winner Dplus KIA 3
Regional Finals Runner-Up T1 3
China LPL Summer Champion Bilibili Gaming 1
Championship Points Top Esports 2
Regional Finals Winner LNG Esports 3
Regional Finals Runner-Up Weibo Gaming 3
EMEA LEC Season Finals Champion G2 Esports[d] 1
Season Finals Runner-Up Fnatic 2
North America LCS Championship Winner FlyQuest 1
Championship Runner-Up Team Liquid 2
Started from Play-in Stage
EMEA LEC Season Finals 3rd Place MAD Lions KOI[d] 1
North America LCS Championship 3rd Place 100 Thieves 1
Asia-Pacific PCS Summer Champion PSG Talon 1
Summer Runner-Up SoftBank Hawks[e] 2
Vietnam VCS Summer Champion GAM Esports 1
Summer Runner-Up Vikings Esports 2
Brazil CBLOL Split 2 Champion PaiN Gaming 2
Latin America LLA Closing Champion Movistar R7[f] 2

Pre-tournament rankings

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Riot Games unveiled its global power ranking ahead of the 2024 League of Legends World Championship. According to Riot Games, Gen.G ranked first with 1,663 points, and Bilibili Gaming ranked second with 1,602 points. Hanwha Life Esports, Top Esports, and G2 Esports followed. T1, the defending champion, was ranked sixth with 1,467 points.[9]

Venues

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Berlin, Paris, and London were chosen to host the competition. The O2 Arena was announced as the finals venue during the 2023 League of Legends World Championship final in Seoul, South Korea.[10][11] The Riot Games Arena, and the Adidas Arena were announced as the venues for the play-in/Swiss stage and the quarterfinals/semifinals on 5 January 2024, respectively.[2]

Berlin, Germany Paris, France London, England
Play-in and Swiss Stage Quarterfinals and Semifinals Final
Riot Games Arena Adidas Arena The O2 Arena
Capacity: 210 Capacity: 9,000 Capacity: 20,000
     

Play-in stage

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  • Date: 25–29 September
  • Venue: Riot Games Arena, Berlin
  • 8 teams were put into a double-elimination bracket. Pool 1 teams will play against Pool 2 teams in Opening matches. No two teams from the same region could be placed in the same half of the bracket.
  • All matches are best-of-three.
  • Four teams advance to Swiss stage as pool 4. Remaining teams are eliminated.
Opening MatchesWinner's MatchAdvance to Swiss stage
Match 1
MAD Lions KOI2
Match 7
Vikings Esports0
W1MAD Lions KOI2
Match 2MAD Lions KOI
W2PSG Talon1
PSG Talon2
PaiN Gaming1
Match 3
GAM Esports2
Match 8
SoftBank Hawks0
W3GAM Esports2
Match 4GAM Esports
W4Movistar R70
100 Thieves1
Movistar R72
Elimination MatchesDecider MatchesAdvance to Swiss stage
Match 9
Match 5L8Movistar R71
PaiN Gaming
L1Vikings Esports0W5PaiN Gaming2
L2PaiN Gaming2
Match 10
Match 6L7PSG Talon2
PSG Talon
L3SoftBank Hawks0W6100 Thieves0
L4100 Thieves2

Source: LoL Esports

Swiss stage

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  • Date and time: 3–7 and 10–13 October, start time at 14:00 CEST (UTC+2)
  • Venue: Riot Games Arena, Berlin
  • 16 teams play in Swiss-system format with five rounds.
    • Round 1, Pool 1 teams will play against Pool 4 teams, while Pool 2 teams will play against Pool 3 teams. Teams from the same region do not play against each other.
    • From Round 2 onward, teams with the same record will play each other. Match up will be determined by draw after each round and teams from the same region can play each other. New to this year, teams will not be placed in rematches against previous opponents.
  • Teams with three wins advance to knockout stage, while teams with three losses are eliminated.
  • All advancement and elimination are best-of-three, with all other matches being best-of-one.

Bracket

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Advance to knockouts
2–0LNG Esports
1–0Hanwha Life Esports1Gen.G
0–0G2 Esports0Gen.G2Advance to knockouts
Hanwha Life Esports1Hanwha Life Esports1Dplus KIA02–1Top Esports
PSG Talon0Dplus KIA1LNG Esports2Dplus KIA0Hanwha Life Esports
FlyQuest1FlyQuest0Top Esports2T1
GAM Esports0Gen.G11–1G2 Esports0Advance to knockouts
G2 Esports1Top Esports0Bilibili Gaming0T122–2Weibo Gaming
PaiN Gaming0Bilibili Gaming0T11Hanwha Life Esports2Dplus KIA1Bilibili Gaming
Bilibili Gaming1LNG Esports1PSG Talon0FlyQuest1Weibo Gaming2FlyQuest
MAD Lions KOI0FlyQuest1FlyQuest2
Top Esports10–1Top Esports11–2Team Liquid1Eliminated
T10T11Fnatic0Team Liquid2G2 Esports1Dplus KIA
Team Liquid0PaiN Gaming0Weibo Gaming0GAM Esports1Bilibili Gaming2G2 Esports
LNG Esports1PSG Talon1G2 Esports1Weibo Gaming2Team Liquid
Fnatic0MAD Lions KOI0Fnatic1Eliminated
Dplus KIA1Weibo Gaming10–2Bilibili Gaming2PSG Talon
Gen.G1Team Liquid0PaiN Gaming0PSG Talon0Fnatic
Weibo Gaming0Fnatic1Team Liquid2GAM Esports
GAM Esports0MAD Lions KOI1Eliminated
GAM Esports2MAD Lions KOI
PaiN Gaming

Source: LoL Esports

Knockout stage

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  • Date and time: 17–20 and 26–27 October, 2 November, start time at 14:00 CEST (UTC+2)
  • Eight teams from Swiss stage are drawn into a single-elimination bracket.
    • Two teams with a 3–0 record in the Swiss stage are on opposite sides of the bracket and face those with a 3–2 record, while all remaining teams will be seeded randomly.
  • Venue: Adidas Arena in Paris (Quarterfinals-Semifinals); The O2 Arena in London (Finals)
  • All matches are best-of-five.
  • The members of the winning team will lift the Summoner's Cup, earning their title as the 2024 League of Legends World Champions.

Qualified teams

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Eight teams qualify for the playoff portion of the tournament from the Swiss stage.

Pools Teams
Pool 1
(3–0)
LNG Esports
Gen.G
Pool 2
(3–1)
Top Esports
Hanwha Life Esports
T1
Pool 3
(3–2)
Weibo Gaming
Bilibili Gaming
FlyQuest

Bracket

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QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal
17 October, 14:00 CEST – Paris
LNG Esports1
26 October, 14:00 CEST – Paris
Weibo Gaming3
Weibo Gaming0
18 October, 14:00 CEST – Paris
Bilibili Gaming3
Hanwha Life Esports1
2 November, 15:00 CET – London
Bilibili Gaming3
Bilibili Gaming2
19 October, 14:00 CEST – Paris
T13
Top Esports0
27 October, 14:00 CET – Paris
T13
T13
20 October, 14:00 CEST – Paris
Gen.G1
Gen.G3
FlyQuest2

Source: LoL Esports

Ranking

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A base prize pool of US$2,250,000 is offered for the tournament. This pool is to be further increased based on sales of an event pass within the League of Legends store.[12] The prize pool is spread among the teams as seen below:[13]

Place Team PI SS QF SF Finals Prize (%) Prize (USD)
1st T1 3–1 3–0 3–1 3–2 20% $450,000
2nd Bilibili Gaming 3–2 3–1 3–0 2–3 16% $360,000
3rd–4th Gen.G 3–0 3–2 1–3 8% $180,000
Weibo Gaming 3–2 3–1 0–3
5th–8th LNG Esports 3–0 1–3 4.5% $101,250
Hanwha Life Esports 3–1 1–3
FlyQuest 3–2 2–3
Top Esports 3–1 0–3
9th–11th G2 Esports 2–3 3.5% $78,750
Dplus KIA 2–3
Team Liquid 2–3
12th–14th Fnatic 1–3 3% $67,500
GAM Esports 2–0 1–3
PSG Talon 2–1 1–3
15th–16th MAD Lions KOI 2–0 0–3 2.5% $56,250
PaiN Gaming 2–1 0–3
17th–18th 100 Thieves 1–2 1.75% $39,375
Movistar R7 1–2
19th–20th SoftBank Hawks 0–2 1% $22,500
Viking Esports 0–2
Place Team PI SS QF SF Finals Prize (%) Prize (USD)

Marketing

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Official song

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"Heavy Is the Crown", performed by Linkin Park, was announced as the tournament's theme song on 24 September 2024.[14] A day later, Riot Games and Linkin Park released the song's music video, featuring the most recent champions T1 of the LCK, consisting of reigning Finals MVP Choi "Zeus" Woo-je, Mun "Oner" Hyeon-jun, Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok, Lee "Gumayusi" Min-hyeong, and Ryu "Keria" Min-seok. The video also featured players from the winners of major professional regions during the Spring and Summer Splits, such as Gen.G's Jeong "Chovy" Ji-hoon of the LCK, Bilibili Gaming's Chen "Bin" Zebin of the LPL, G2 Esports's Rasmus "Caps" Winther of the LEC, and FlyQuest's Fahad "Massu" Abdulmalek of the LCS. Diego "Brance" Amaral of the CBLOL's Red Canids was also included, despite the team not qualifying for the tournament.[15]

Despite being on tour for their at-the-time upcoming album From Zero,[16] Linkin Park performed the song as part of the opening ceremony for the final between Bilibili Gaming and T1.[17] They previously performed at the O2 Arena for their album tour, during which they performed the same track.[18]

Slogan

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The tournament's official slogan, Make Them Believe, was unveiled on 31 August 2024 alongside a format explainer video on YouTube.

Sponsorship

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Riot Games Esports Partners LoL Esports Partners

Notes

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  1. ^ The 2021 edition was held in Reykjavík, Iceland, with all games of the tournament being held at the Laugardalshöll. No fans were in attendance due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Iceland.
  2. ^ This qualification was activated when Gen.G qualified for the 2024 LCK Summer playoffs.
  3. ^ Gen.G automatically qualified for the tournament by winning the 2024 Mid-Season Invitational and qualifying for the 2024 LCK Summer Playoffs. Their pool is decided by placement in both LCK Summer Playoffs and Regional Championship Points
  4. ^ a b G2 Esports automatically qualified for the tournament by winning the 2024 LEC Summer Split. As such, their slot for being the 2024 LEC Season Finals Champion was instead given to the third-place team in LEC 2024 Season Finals.
  5. ^ The team's official name is Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Gaming, the esports division of Japanese baseball team Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. SoftBank Hawks qualified for the PCS Summer Playoffs by winning the LJL 2024 Summer Split.
  6. ^ The team's official name is Rainbow7 and is owned by Just Toys International. It competed with "Movistar R7" due to being sponsored by Movistar.

References

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  1. ^ Sacco, Dom (2 November 2024). "T1 win Worlds 2024 final as fans fill London's O2 Arena". esports-news.co.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "The State of the Game: LoL Esports in 2024". lolesports.com. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  3. ^ Mike Stubbs (3 November 2024). "T1 Wins The 'League Of Legends' World Championship… Again". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2 November 2024.
  4. ^ Rijit Banerjee (3 November 2024). "Faker goes above and beyond as T1 defend LoL Worlds title". Dot Esports. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
  5. ^ Daniels, Tom (5 January 2024). "Riot Games announces MSI and Worlds 2024 locations, Hall of Fame and format changes". Esports Insider. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  6. ^ "INTRODUCING LEAGUE OF LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP PACIFIC!". LOL Esports. 30 September 2024. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Introducing League of Legends Championship of The Americas". LOL Esports. 31 October 2024. Retrieved 2 November 2024.
  8. ^ "LoL Esports | Schedule". lolesports.com. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  9. ^ "LoL Esports | Global Power Rankings". lolesports.com. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  10. ^ "2024 World Final Set for The O2 in London". LoL Esports. 19 November 2023. Archived from the original on 19 November 2023. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  11. ^ Tom Richardson (19 November 2023). "League of Legends Worlds 2024 final to be held at London's O2 Arena". BBC. Archived from the original on 19 November 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  12. ^ "League of Legends - Worlds 2024 - League of Legends Support". 16 September 2024. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  13. ^ Esguerra, Tyler (17 September 2024). "LoL Worlds 2024 prize pool – Full amount, breakdown, and more". Dot Esports. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  14. ^ Takahashi, Dean (22 September 2024). "Riot Games taps Linkin Park for 2024 League of Legends World Championship anthem". Venture Beat. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  15. ^ Tuting, Kristine (25 September 2024). "Is Heavy Is The Crown a hit or a miss? Fans debate over Linkin Park's Worlds 2024 song". ONE Esports. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  16. ^ Carter, Emily (27 September 2024). "Linkin Park unleash new single Heavy Is The Crown, announce more 2024 shows". Kerrang!. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  17. ^ "Worlds 2024 Opening Ceremony Presented by Mastercard". LOL Esports. 29 October 2024. Retrieved 2 November 2024.
  18. ^ Down, Arron (29 September 2024). "League of Legends Worlds 2024 anthem video is a banger with an identity crisis". PCGamesN. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  19. ^ a b Brittain, Anna-Marie (26 June 2024). "Leveling Up Esports: Riot Games' Partners with OMEN and HyperX". HP Inc. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  20. ^ "Riot Games Teams Up With AWS To Reimagine Esports Experiences Through Esports Broadcast Stats, Power Rankings, And More". Sports Video Group. 18 July 2022.
  21. ^ Sprung, Shlomo (1 March 2021). "Verizon, Riot Games Expand Partnership With League Of Legends, Valorant Ahead Of Midseason Iceland Events". Forbes. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  22. ^ Frascarelli, Victor (13 October 2022). "Mastercard and Riot Games extend global League of Legends partnership". Esports Insider. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  23. ^ Hitt, Kevin (20 June 2023). "Mastercard extends Riot Games deal into Valorant esports". Sports Business Journal. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  24. ^ "Opera GX and Riot Games strike a partnership to deliver exclusive drops and first ever Co-Streamer Hub to League of Legends Esports global events". Opera. 9 September 2024.
  25. ^ Nordland, Jake (12 September 2022). "Mercedes-Benz and Riot Games extend esports partnership to 2025". Esports Insider. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  26. ^ Becht, Eli (30 September 2019). "OPPO named global smartphone partner of League of Legends esports". Dexerto. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  27. ^ Xu, Davide (16 May 2024). "Riot Games and Cisco expand League of Legends esports partnership". Esports Insider. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
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