The eyes of the eSports world will turn to the United States this autumn as four cities host the League of Legends 2016 World Championships.
Sixteen teams from three continents will compete for the title of best LoL team in the world. Here is all you need to know ahead of the event.
Where and when?
The tournament begins with group stage action on 29 September, when The Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco will play host to the opening games. The 16 teams, divided into four groups of four, will compete here until 9 October in a double round-robin format of best-of-one matches. The group draw will take place on 10 September.
Eight teams, the top two from each group, will advance from California to the quarter-final knockout stage in Chicago. Here the top ranked versus second ranked teams from each group will face one another in the bracket. Action will commence at the historic Chicago Theater on 13 October, with play continuing over four pulsating days. The format for all clashes in the knockout stages will be single elimination over best-of-five matches.
The four victorious teams will advance to the semi-finals over 21-22 October at the world famous Madison Square Garden in New York City. Located in the heart of Manhattan, the arena is home to both the New York Knicks and the New York Rangers.
The Championship game will he held on 29 October at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where the two remaining teams will battle it out at the home of the Lakers and Clippers for world supremacy. The top prize this year is $1,000,000 as well as the Summoner’s Cup.
Who?
Competing on home turf will be three teams from the NA LCS as Team SoloMid, Counter Logic Gaming and Cloud9 all advanced to the group stage. Counter Logic Gaming, founded in 2010, are the oldest LoL team still active. Lead by top-laner Darshan “Darshan” Upadhyaha and Choi “HuHi” Jae-hyun, they are capable of putting together a decent run depending on the group stage draw.
There will also be three teams representing China; EDward Gaming, IMay and Royal Never Give Up. EDward Gaming are one of the up-and-comers of League of Legends. Just two-and-a-half years old, the team include Ming “ClearLove” Kai, who is considered one of the most mechanically skillful players in the game. As a consequence, they are one of the teams to watch at this tournament.
The LCK of South Korea will see three teams enter the group stage too. SK Telecom T1, the defending world champions and early favourites to defend their crown, head the Korean contingent. Despite poor form in the early season by their own high standards, they still come into the Worlds led by Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, who has been with the team since February 2013. He is considered by most to be the top League of Legends player of all-time. Known as “God”, the 20-year-old is a two-time world champion (both with SKT) and has turned down repeated offers to play for Chinese outfits. Also representing South Korea will be ROX Tigers and Samsung.
Competing from the EU LCS will be G2 Esports, Splyce and H2k-Gaming. Splyce are the newest team to make the tournament, having been founded in late 2015 following the acquisition of Dignitas EU for a reported $1,000,000. The team made a surprising late season surge to finish 2nd in the 2016 EU LCS Summer Playoffs and qualify for Worlds. They will look to continue their hot streak, although they are rank outsiders for the top prize.
Meanwhile, Flash Wolves and ahq e-Sports Club will represent Taiwan/Hong Kong/Macau, while INTZ e-Sports and Albus NoX Luna advanced to the group stage as International Wildcards.
Where to watch
For those fans not able to make it to the live events, there will be two ways to watch the action as it unfolds. Worldwide fans can log onto www.lolesports.com and view a live stream, while North American fans can use the ESPN App to watch selected games including the finals. In addition, the LoL eSports YouTube channel will archive all games for those unable to watch live.
This autumn will feature four weeks of the best eSports gaming of the year. Tickets are still available and with multiple ways to tune in, all fans should mark their calendars and settle in for all the heart pounding excitement.
