The 2021 League of Legends World Championship kicks off on Oct. 5 with its play-in stage. But before that begins, Riot will be showcasing the draws for both the play-in and group stage.
The Worlds draw show is the procedure by which teams are placed into groups based on their respective regions and seeds. Here’s everything you need to know about the tournament’s format, its schedule, and where to watch the draw show.
What’s the format for the play-in and group stages?
Similar to last year’s Worlds, a total of 22 teams—instead of the usual 24—will be vying for the honor of lifting the Summoner’s Cup. The format contains three separate stages: the play-in stage, group stage, and knockout stage.
The play-in stage takes 10 teams and splits them into two groups of five. Each team will have a chance to play all of the opposing squads in their group once. The top finishing team automatically advances to the group stage, while the third and fourth-place teams will play a best-of-five. The winner will challenge the other group’s second seed for the last two group stage spots.
The group stage sees the top four teams from the play-in stage join the 12 squads that directly qualified for the group stage due to their seedings from their respective regions. The 16 teams will be split into four groups of four, with each team playing against every squad in their group twice. The top two teams from the four groups will advance to the knockout stage.
The knockout stage features the eight teams from the group stage moving into the playoffs. This stage contains the quarterfinals, semifinals, and grand finals and will adopt a single-elimination bracket with all the matches played in a best-of-five format. The matchups for this stage are decided by a draw following the final day of the group stage.
What’s the schedule?
This month-long tournament will begin on Oct. 5 with the play-in stage ending on Oct. 9. This is followed up by the group stage, which will take place from Oct. 11 to 13, with a break in between until it finally finishes on Oct. 15 to 18. The tournament will end with the knockout stage. The quarterfinals will be on Oct. 22 to 25, followed by the semifinals on Oct. 30 and 31, and finished off with the finals on Nov. 6.
How do I watch?
Before all the action takes place, however, the Worlds 2021 draw show will be held on Sept. 22 at 7am CT. During this show, Riot will draw both the play-in and group stage groups so the competing teams know who they’re playing against.
The draw show can be watched on the LoL Esports YouTube channel, the Riot Games Twitch channel, or on the watch.lolesports.com website. Alternatively, the draw show will almost certainly be co-streamed by League streamers and personalities.
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