League Of Legends World Championship 2025: Teams, Schedule & Prize Pool

The League of Legends World Championship 2025 was one of the easiest Worlds events to follow if you like clear structure, fast pacing, and high-stakes matches that start early and never really let up. It ran from October 14 to November 9, 2025, took place across Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu, and featured a tighter field built around a single Play-In decider, a Swiss stage, and a single-elimination knockout bracket.

In this guide, I’m going to break down the full event in a way you can actually use. You will get the qualified teams, the schedule by stage, how the format worked, what Fearless Draft changed, and the full prize pool basics with a simple distribution view.

League Of Legends World Championship 2025 At A Glance

Here is the whole tournament in one quick snapshot.

• Dates: October 14 to November 9, 2025

• Host Country: China

• Cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu

• Total Teams In The Worlds Ecosystem: 17 teams involved, with 16 in Swiss

• Stages: Play-In Decider, Swiss Stage, Knockout Stage

• Prize Pool: $5,000,000 USD (base prize pool, excluding potential extra revenue streams)

Quick Format Table

Even if you have watched Worlds for years, the 2025 edition stood out for three practical reasons.

A One-Day Play-In That Actually Mattered

Instead of a long Play-In with multiple teams, Worlds 2025 started with a single Bo5 decider between the #4 seeds of the two best-performing MSI regions. That made the opening day feel like a real headline match, not warm-up games.

Swiss Stage As The Main Event Engine

Swiss creates momentum. Every day matters, the storylines change fast, and you get matchups between teams that are actually in the same performance band based on record.

Fearless Draft Raised The Skill Ceiling

When Fearless Draft is active in a series, teams cannot just spam the same comfort picks every game. It forces deeper champion pools and better coaching prep.

If you only watch one part of Worlds, Swiss plus knockouts is usually where the best games happen.

League Of Legends World Championship 2025 Teams

The League of Legends World Championship 2025 team list covered the major regions and built a clean 16-team Swiss stage after the Play-In decider.

Qualified Teams By Region

LCK (Korea)

• Gen.G

• Hanwha Life Esports

• KT Rolster

• T1 (Play-In decider participant as the #4 seed)

LPL (China)

• Bilibili Gaming

• Anyone’s Legend

• Top Esports

• Invictus Gaming (Play-In decider participant as the #4 seed)

LEC (EMEA)

• G2 Esports

• Movistar KOI

• Fnatic

LTA (Americas)

• FlyQuest

• Vivo Keyd Stars

• 100 Thieves

LCP (Asia-Pacific)

• CTBC Flying Oyster

• Team Secret Whales

• PSG Talon

All Worlds 2025 Teams List

The Play-In match decided which #4 seed joined Swiss. The winner also influenced how the seeding tiers worked in Round 1 of Swiss.

League Of Legends World Championship 2025 Schedule And Venues

The League of Legends World Championship 2025 schedule was built to move quickly. Swiss did not drag, and knockouts ran with minimal breaks, which made the event feel like a sprint.

Venues By Stage

• Beijing Smart Esports Center, Beijing: Play-In and Swiss

• Mercedes-Benz Arena, Shanghai: Knockout Stage from quarterfinals through semifinals

• Dong’an Lake Sports Park Multifunctional Gymnasium, Chengdu: Finals

Stage-By-Stage Schedule

Play-In Decider

• October 14, 2025

• One Bo5 decider match between the #4 seeds from the two best MSI regions

Swiss Stage

• October 15 to October 25, 2025

• Swiss was played across multiple match days with a mix of Bo1s and Bo3s

Knockout Stage

• Quarterfinals: October 28 to October 31, 2025

• Semifinals: November 1 to November 2, 2025

• Finals: November 9, 2025

Schedule Table You Can Screenshot

If you want the cleanest viewing plan, Swiss is the best for volume and variety, and knockouts are best for peak pressure games.

How The Worlds 2025 Format Worked

If you are trying to understand Worlds fast, remember this.

• Play-In decides the final Swiss participant

• Swiss decides the top 8

• Knockouts decide the champion in a single-elimination bracket

Play-In Decider Rules

• A single Bo5

• Winner qualifies into Swiss

• The result also changes Swiss seeding tiers slightly by boosting the Play-In winner’s region seed placement in the tier system

This creates immediate stakes. It also makes Round 1 seeding feel a bit more dynamic.

Swiss Stage Rules

Swiss is simple when you focus on outcomes.

• You play teams with the same record as you

• You keep playing until you hit 3 wins or 3 losses

• 3 wins means you advance

• 3 losses means you are out

Swiss has five rounds total, but not every team plays all five. Some teams finish early at 3-0 or crash out at 0-3.

Swiss Match Types

• Many matches are Bo1

• Advancement and elimination matches are typically Bo3

That mix matters. Bo1 rewards preparation and early confidence, while Bo3 reveals which teams actually adapt.

Swiss Stage Advancement Summary

Knockout Stage Rules

• 8 teams

• Single-elimination bracket

• All matches Bo5

• Win or go home

If you hate randomness, knockouts are where the “real” Worlds champion usually proves it.

Fearless Draft Explained In Simple Terms

Fearless Draft matters most in series play, because it changes how teams approach champion pools and adaptation.

Here is the simple idea.

• In a Fearless Draft series, champions that have already been played become unavailable later in the same series

• That makes it harder to rely on one comfort composition

• Teams need more depth, more flexibility, and better planning

What You Notice As A Viewer

• Less repeat comps

• More creative counterpicks

• More off-meta pocket picks

• Draft becomes a bigger win condition than usual

What It Changes For Teams

• Coaches need deeper prep and better contingency plans

• Players need reliable secondary and tertiary picks

• Teams that only have “one way to win” get exposed fast

In practical terms, Fearless Draft rewards versatility, and it punishes shallow champion pools.

League Of Legends World Championship 2025 Prize Pool

The League of Legends World Championship 2025 prize pool base figure was $5,000,000 USD, which is a huge jump compared to the long era where Worlds hovered around the low two-million range.

Also keep this in mind. Prize pool money is not the only revenue teams can earn during Worlds. Teams can also benefit from separate event-related revenue streams depending on how Riot structures that year’s ecosystem.

Base Prize Pool Breakdown Logic

The distribution follows a standard pattern.

• Champion gets the biggest share

• Runner-up gets the second-biggest share

• Semifinalists and quarterfinalists still take meaningful money

• Teams eliminated earlier receive smaller amounts

Prize Pool Distribution Table

If you only care about one number, remember this.

• Total base prize pool: $5,000,000 USD

How To Follow Worlds 2025 Like A Pro

A lot of people feel lost because they try to track everything at once. Instead, follow the tournament in layers.

Layer 1: Track Records In Swiss

Swiss is all about record pressure.

• Who starts 2-0

• Who goes 0-2 and faces elimination danger

• Which 2-2 matchups decide the final bracket spots

Layer 2: Watch The Draws Like They Are Matches

The Swiss draws and the knockout draw can change the entire tournament story. Bracket fate is real, especially when the format has fewer safety nets.

Layer 3: In Knockouts, Look For Adaptation

In Bo5 play, the better team usually wins because they adjust.

Watch for:

• How teams change draft priorities

• Whether they shift win conditions, like early tempo vs scaling

• Whether they can win in multiple styles

If a team only wins one way, they usually break in a Bo5.

Key Storylines That Always Matter At Worlds

Even if you do not follow every league, you can still enjoy Worlds by focusing on a few consistent storylines.

Regional Clashes

• LCK vs LPL matchups are always headline material

• LEC vs Eastern teams becomes a test of preparation and execution

• LTA and LCP squads often become fan favorites when they punch above expectations

Meta And Draft Trends

• Which champions become first-pick priorities

• Which answers show up repeatedly

• Whether the event becomes early-game focused or teamfight focused

Player Form Under Pressure

Worlds is where reputations change fast.

• A star can become a legend

• A favorite can collapse in one bad series

• A rookie can look fearless on the biggest stage

Wrap Up

The League of Legends World Championship 2025 delivered a clean event structure and a schedule that kept the pace high from the first day to the Finals. With the tournament set across Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu, a Swiss stage that created nonstop matchups, and a $5,000,000 base prize pool on the line, Worlds 2025 was built to reward depth, preparation, and adaptation.

If you want to follow Worlds in the easiest way, track records in Swiss, watch the draws, then lock in for knockouts where the Bo5 series shows who can actually adjust when everything is on the line.