With 2023 moving along, the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) is coming back as one of the biggest mid-season esports tournaments in recent history. Teams from across the world will face off as fans will get a true test of how strong their region is.
Here’s a rundown of how to watch the event, the schedule for it and the teams invited.
Save-the-date: #MSI2023 is coming to London!
Learn more here: https://t.co/6Ft5mKlYHM pic.twitter.com/T7MuimwRRO
— LoL Esports (@lolesports) February 8, 2023
How to watch MSI 2023
The MSI tournament will be live via Riot Games’ Twitch account. Asides from that, you’ll also be able to watch it straight from the League of Legends Esports website.
Dates and schedule
The event begins on May 2, 2023, stretching until the finals on May 21. The venue is the Copper Box Arena in London, England, known for hosting the London 2012 Summer Olympics as well as some recent esports events.
As for a more in-depth breakdown of the schedule, May 2 to 7 are the play-ins. Then, after a two-day break, we have the bracket stage, going from May 9 to 14 and May 16 to 20. Lastly, May 21 is the grand finals day.
Tickets will go on sale starting on Feb. 23, 2023 at 5 AM EST (10 AM GMT). The prices vary, from as low as £29 to as high as £94.
Teams going to MSI 2023
One noticeable change from MSI 2022 to this year is the increase in teams. Now, instead of twelve, there will be thirteen teams competing for the MSI title. While we don’t know yet which teams will go, here are how the teams from each region can qualify.
To start, we have two teams each from the popular regions of LEC, LCS, LPL and LCK. We have one spot for CBLOL, the Brazilian League, as well as one spot for the LJL to represent Japan.
Then, for the final three spots, we have one team from the LLA (Liga Latinoamérica), one from the VCS (Vietnam Championship Series) and lastly one from the PCS (Pacific Championship Series). Altogether, these will make up the thirteen teams going to London for MSI 2023. This post will be updated with the teams once they have qualified.
The MSI 2023 format
As for the MSI 2023 format, it’s a familiar structure as in previous years. To start, we have the play-ins. Both LCK teams as well as the top seeds from the LCS, LEC and LPL have a bye, going straight to the bracket stage. That leaves the other two seeds as well as the other regions’ representatives to try and qualify.
The play-in is a double elimination bracket, with the eight teams split into two groups of four teams. They will fight in the best-of-three series to win their group. Three teams will qualify for the bracket stage: the two winners of the group as well as the victor of the lower bracket last-chance qualification match.
Then, the bracket stage consists of another double-elimination tournament, between the eight teams remaining. In a similar fashion to the play-ins, teams will have to fight their way to the top to get the MSI 2023 title.
