Riot Games has announced the full international esports calendar for League of Legends in 2026, confirming that the World Championship (Worlds 2026) will be hosted across Texas and New York. This season-ending tournament returns to North America for the first time since 2022, with additional international events scheduled for Brazil and South Korea.
The 2026 Worlds will be split between two locations. In a press conference ahead of the Worlds 2025 finals, Riot confirmed the city of Allen in Texas will host the Play-In, Swiss Stage, and Playoffs phases of the 2026 tournament. The competition will then culminate with the Grand Final in New York City. Specific venues for each stage have not yet been disclosed.
This adds to a busy 2026 sports calendar in the US. The country is set to co-host the FIFA World Cup with Canada and Mexico, while DreamHack Atlanta 2026 will headline two premier esports tournaments new to the city. The event is scheduled to feature Atlanta’s first-ever Call of Duty League Major (CDL Major III) and the debut of an Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) competition.
Also read: Riot Games unveils full roster of Worlds 2025 partners
The announcement also detailed plans for the other major international tournaments in the 2026 season. The first, First Stand, will head to São Paulo, Brazil from March 16th to 22nd. Riot Games confirmed the 2026 edition will see an expansion from six to eight competing teams, with all matches being played as a best-of-five series. This marks a return of a major LoL esports event to Brazil, which last hosted the Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) in 2017.
Completing the 2026 calendar, the MSI 2026 is set to return to South Korea for the first time since 2022. The event will be held in the city of Daejeon, though the specific venue and dates are still to be confirmed.
