Upcoming Changes in the 2025 League of Legends LCK Season

Exciting changes are on the horizon for the South Korean League of Legends esports scene, known as the LCK. Traditionally, the league has operated with two splits accompanied by two major international events each year. However, the upcoming modifications will see the LCK transition to a single seasonal split while introducing additional tournaments and qualifiers throughout the year.

This article outlines the notable adjustments expected in the League of Legends LCK for 2025.

League of Legends LCK 2025: Tournament Changes and New Format

In 2025, the League of Legends esports framework will expand to include three international competitions instead of the usual two. The newly added event is slated for March, which will require LCK teams to undergo a qualifying round for entry.

The three international tournaments are as follows:

• First International Tournament (Name TBD): March
• Mid-Season Invitational: June-July
• World Championship: October-November

There are also significant changes coming to the LCK’s structure. Previously, the league has seen two splits each year: the LCK Spring and LCK Summer, with one team being crowned champion for the season. Starting next year, the LCK splits will merge into a single annual season, resulting in just one champion per year.

A new tournament, the LCK CUP, will introduce an exciting prelude to the LCK split. Scheduled for January and February, this will be the first tournament of the year, with its victors earning spots in the inaugural international tournament of the year.

The tournaments lined up for the LCK in 2025 include:

• LCK CUP
• LCK Regular Season

1) League of Legends LCK CUP

The LCK CUP will provide an early glimpse into players’ performances following recent patch updates and shifts in the meta. Notably, all matches will follow the Fearless Draft format, where once a champion is selected in a match, that champion is subsequently banned for the remainder of that series. The first international tournament will also adopt this drafting system.

The LCK CUP will consist of three key phases:

• Group Stage: Best-of-three matches
• Play-ins: Best-of-three/Finals are best-of-five
• Playoffs: Best-of-five

Group Stage

In the Group Stage, ten LCK teams will be divided into two groups. Notably, the top two teams from the previous season will be placed in separate groups, allowing them to select additional teams within their brackets.

Each team will face off against opponents from the other group in a single round-robin fashion, with overall results determining the Winner and Loser groups.

Play-ins and Playoffs

The leading three teams from the Winner group will automatically secure their spots in the Playoff Stage, while the other two teams will compete in the Play-in Stage. Additionally, the top four teams from the Loser group must vie for places in the Play-in Stage, with the top three teams advancing to the Playoffs.

The Playoff Stage will employ a double-elimination system to identify the ultimate champion of the LCK CUP, with the winner earning a spot in the first League of Legends international tournament of the year in March.

2) League of Legends LCK Regular Season

The LCK Regular Season will be structured throughout the year, featuring the following stages:

• Rounds 1-2: Best-of-three
• LCK Road to MSI: Best-of-five
• Rounds 3-5 (Group Stage): Best-of-three
• Play-ins: Best-of-five
• Playoffs: Best-of-five

Rounds 1-2 and LCK Road to MSI

The top six teams will compete in the LCK Road to MSI, using a 5-round King-of-the-Hill format. The top two teams will then secure direct entries into the MSI.

Rounds 3-5 (Group Stage)

After the conclusion of MSI, the ten LCK teams will be sorted into two groups according to their standings from the earlier rounds: Legend Group and Rise Group. Teams will play best-of-three matches exclusively against other teams in their groups over the next three rounds.

The top two teams from the Legend Group will directly enter Round 2 of the League of Legends LCK Playoffs, whereas teams placing third and fourth will advance to Playoff Round 1.

Teams finishing fifth in the Legend Group and the top three from the Rise Group will enter the Play-in Stage. Unfortunately, the fourth and fifth-placed teams in the Rise Group will be eliminated from the season.

Play-ins and Playoffs

The Play-in Stage will feature best-of-five matches, with the top two teams progressing to the Playoff Stage. The remaining six teams will compete in the Playoff Stage’s double-elimination format, also consisting of best-of-five matches, vying for the LCK trophy.

Moving ahead, the LCK will not have Regional qualifiers starting in 2025 to decide the teams that advance to the League of Legends Worlds. Rather, spots at Worlds will be determined by teams’ final placements in the LCK Playoffs. The top three teams from the Playoffs will earn their places, while the fourth spot will be based on the MSI results.

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