From the LCK Cup to the First Stand, March hasn't even concluded, yet the League of Legends esports scene is already blistering with heat. It’s been a recurring theme, but this year has introduced a raft of novel adjustments, from the 'First Selection' to 'Coach Voice'. With a slew of fresh regulations now in play, fans have been vocal with their reactions. Amidst this, Riot Games held a media round table on the 21st to discuss the performance of these new rules and share operational plans for upcoming international events like MSI and the World Championship. Chris Greeley, Global Head of LoL Esports, was in attendance to front the session.

First off, the upcoming 2026 World Championship is slated to kick off on October 15th, running for a month in the United States. Furthermore, with an additional slot granted to the Brazilian league (CBLOL), the tournament will feature 19 teams, two more than last year.

The Play-In stage was initially set to take place in Allen, Texas, but due to operational reasons, it has been relocated to a dedicated studio in Los Angeles, where it will run until October 18th using a best-of-five double-elimination format. Only one of the four teams will survive to advance to the next round, while the Swiss stage through to the semi-finals will be held at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas, from October 23rd to November 8th. The grand finale has been secured for the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Greeley remarked, "This venue holds the symbolic weight most fitting for fans from across the globe to gather and crown the ultimate champion."

We are quite satisfied internally with hosting three international events per year. However, I consider the First Stand to still be an experimental tournament. While there were five teams when it was held in Korea last year, seven teams are participating this year, and it is being conducted as a full best-of-five series. We intend to continue refining this format while considering fan feedback, reactions, and viewership metrics.

The current Korean broadcasting contract includes Worlds, and I don't see accepting an exclusive offer as viable in that context. I wouldn't say it's impossible, but our current plan is to reach as many fans as possible. While we sometimes meet commercial demands—as we did with Chzzk and Soop—our ultimate goal remains accessibility. We plan to strive to provide the content across as many platforms and in as many languages as the fans wish to watch.

The fact that Western teams aren't narrowing the gap is a constant point of discussion internally. However, many Western teams brought in new rosters, and I think watching them grow has been interesting. It’s true there is a gap between the top-tier teams and the rest, but we are doing our best to help all teams compete.

Compared to other cities, Daejeon had many advantages, such as a fantastic base of fans and the city's proactive cooperation. Ultimately, we judged that it would provide the best possible experience for both the fans on-site and the global broadcast.

We separated side selection and pick order this year. Additionally, the LCK and LCP are experimenting with 'Coach Voice' regarding team communication, and from what we’ve heard so far, it seems to be going quite well. We intend to continue refining the competitive format and seeking changes that make sense. We don't want to make changes just to say we did, or solely for the sake of novelty. Therefore, we will continue to experiment where possible.