League of Legends Worlds 2021: Everything you need to know

The 2021 League of Legends World Championship is right around the corner. Beginning with the play-in stage on Oct. 5, Worlds 2021 will emanate from Reykjavík, Iceland and feature 22 of the best teams across the globe battling it out over a month-long period to crown the winner of Season 11.

What is Worlds?

A pinnacle of esports competition, Worlds is a tournament that is attended by thousands and watched by millions each year. The Worlds 2021 stage will play host to dozens of the greatest League of Legends pros walking the planet, where many will forever embed their names into the fabric of esports history.

Some of these players come from less heralded regions. They see Worlds as an opportunity to gain experience against the best teams in the world, make themselves known on a global stage and shine some spotlight on the scenes in their home countries. Others come to Worlds with a chip on their shoulders, looking to break through the stigma surrounding their regions after years of previous failures. Others, still, have been battling all year through the gauntlet of the world’s top leagues and are ready to walk away as World Champions; ready to have their handles immortalized among the game’s historic elite.

No matter the goal, every player attending Worlds has something at stake and something to play for.

Before all of the epic matches to come, before all the pentakills, reverse-sweeps and upsets, Upcomer’s new LoL Worlds 2021 Outlook Series will take a closer look at all 22 teams attending the 2021 League of Legends World Championship.

Which teams have qualified? Worlds 2021 preview schedule

Beginning tomorrow, Upcomer will release a new Worlds 2021 team preview each day. The final two team previews will both be published the day before Worlds 2021 begins. These previews will break down how each team was built, how they made it here, the players to watch for and how they can succeed at Worlds 2021.

Check out the schedule below to follow when your favorite team’s preview is coming. We will update this article with links to each preview once published.

• PEACE (LCO – Oceania) – Sep. 14, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• DetonatioN FocusMe (LJL – Japan) – Sep. 15, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• RED Canids (CBLOL – Brazil) – Sep. 16, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Galatasaray Esports (TCL – Turkey) – Sep. 17, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Infinity Esports (LLA – Latin America) – Sep. 18, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Unicorns of Love (LCL – Russia) – Sep. 19, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Beyond Gaming (PCS – TW/HK/MC/SEA) – Sep. 20, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Cloud9 (LCS – North America) – Sep. 21, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Hanwha Life Esports (LCK – South Korea) – Sep. 22, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• LNG Esports (LPL – China) – Sep. 23, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Rogue (LEC – Europe) – Sep. 24, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• T1 (LCK – South Korea) – Sep. 25, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Royal Never Give Up (LPL – China) – Sep. 26, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Team Liquid (LCS – North America) – Sep. 27, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Fnatic (LEC – Europe) – Sep. 28, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Gen.G (LCK – South Korea) – Sep. 29, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• FunPlus Phoenix (LPL – China) – Sep. 30, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• PSG Talon (PCS – TW/HK/MC/SEA) – Oct. 1, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• 100 Thieves (LCS – North America) – Oct. 2, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• MAD Lions (LEC – Europe) – Oct. 3, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
• Edward Gaming (LPL – China) – Oct. 4, 2021, 1:00 p.m.
• DWG KIA (LCK – South Korea) – Oct. 4, 2021, 2:00 p.m.

All times in ET (Eastern Time).

When are the matches? Worlds 2021 schedule

Beginning with the play-in Stage on Oct. 5, Worlds 2021 will feature squads from China, South Korea, Europe, North America, Brazil, Japan, Turkey and several other emerging regions.

The play-in stage will feature 10 teams from across the world in two groups of five, battling it out in a round-robin style format. The top seed in both groups will automatically advance to the next stage while the No. 2 and No. 3 seed teams will play a sudden death best-of-five series to determine the next two qualifiers. The four teams that ultimately make it through will meet the other 12 teams in the tournament in the group stage. The remaining six teams will go home.

The Group Stage will take place from Oct. 11-13 and Oct. 15-18, with the 16 remaining teams being sorted into four groups of four. They’ll once again battle in a round-robin format and the two top seeds in each group will make it through to the knockout stage. The knockouts will feature a traditional best-of-five tournament style, with quarterfinal matches taking place from Oct. 22-25 and semifinals from Oct. 30-31.

The grand finals of the 2021 League of Legends World Championship will be played on Nov. 6.