Riot Games’ global esports division has confirmed that the 2021 League of Legends World Championship will begin in Iceland on Oct. 5. This news comes after last month’s announcement that the tournament was being moved from China to Europe in the wake of complications surrounding COVID-19.
Earlier this year, Riot held League’s Mid-Season Invitational in Iceland. And after that tournament was met with a largely positive response, the company made the conscious decision to hold the entirety of Worlds there as well. Similar to MSI, Worlds will not feature a live audience out of an abundance of caution.
“Riot successfully hosted the Mid-Season Invitational this past May…without a live audience, which resulted in zero COVID-19 cases among players, staff, and partners,” the company revealed in a statement made earlier today.
The play-in stage of Worlds 2021 will begin on Oct. 5, while the tournament’s main event is set to start on Oct. 11. The grand finals of Worlds 2021 will take place on Nov. 6.
The Oct. 5 start date for Worlds 2021 marks the latest opening date for the League World Championship in its history. In recent years, the event has traditionally kicked off during the final week of September. Riot has revealed that information regarding the group drawing and a full Worlds schedule will be revealed in the near future.
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