MSI 2025 will feature 10 of the best LoL teams in the world fighting for their cut of a US$2 million prize pool and a spot in Worlds 2025.
The League of Legends (LoL) Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) will be hosted in the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, Canada from 27 June to 12 July, LoL developer Riot Games announced on Thursday (20 March). This year's edition of the second cross-regional tournament of the annual LoL esports calendar is also set to have the biggest prize pool in the history of the series at US$2 million.
MSI 2025 will see two teams from each of the five LoL regional leagues in South Korea, China, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas battle it out for the MSI 2025 Champion title and a direct slot in this year's LoL World Championship. Additional slots in Worlds will also be granted to the two best performing regions in MSI 2025.
In the official LoL esports blog post announcing the MSI 2025 venue, Riot Games said that the tournament will serve as “an opportunity to evaluate the teams and regions at the midway point of the season and foreshadows the work needed to claim a World Championship title”.
The developer also explained the reasoning behind their selection of the Pacific Coliseum as the MSI 2025 venue, citing the over 17,000-seat arena's history of hosting both sports and esports events.
“As the largest building within Hastings Park, the Pacific Coliseum has a history of hosting world-class events, including the 2010 Olympic Games’ Short Track Speed Skating and Figure Skating competitions and the 2017 League of Legends Championship Series Spring Finals. With 90,000 square feet of exhibition space, this iconic arena promises an unforgettable setting for the second international tournament of the year,” said Riot Games.
MSI 2025 will notably follow LoL First Stand 2025, which was won by South Korea's Hanwha Life Esports, as the second international tournament in the 2025 LoL esports calendar.
LoL MSI 2025 format, qualification, and tickets
While Riot has yet to reveal the full details for MSI 2025, the tournament is expected to follow a similar format as the one used in last year's edition. The 10 participating teams will be split into two groups starting in either the Play-In Stage or the Bracket Stage, with four teams beginning their campaigns in the Play-Ins, while six others will be seeded directly to the Bracket Stage.
The Play-In teams in MSI 2025 will be comprised of the runners-up in China's LoL Pro League (LPL) Split 2, Europe's LoL European Championship (LEC) Spring Split, and the LoL Championship Pacific (LCP) Split 2, as well as the winner of the LoL Championship of The Americas (LTA) South Split 2.
Meanwhile, the Bracket Stage teams will feature the Top 2 teams in South Korea's LoL Champions Korea (LCK) Road to MSI qualifier, as well as the winning teams of the LPL, LCP, and LTA North Split 2 as well as the LEC's Spring Split.
The Play-Ins will see the four teams starting in that stage play in a GSL format stage, with the Top 2 teams that finish with 2-0 and 2-1 scores qualifying for the Bracket Stage. The Bracket Stage will then pit the eight qualified teams into a double-elimination bracket.
All matches in MSI 2025 will be a best-of-five, and make use of Fearless Draft, which Riot Games recently confirmed will be used throughout the rest of 2025 LoL esports season.
Tickets to MSI 2025 will be sold in two waves in March and May. Mastercard holders are notably eligible for presale tickets at 10 am PDT on 26 March (Wave 1) and 28 May (Wave 2) here. Meanwhile, general tickets officially go on sale at 10 am PDT on 27 March (Wave 1) and 29 May (Wave 2) here.
MSI 2025 will also be broadcasted live in English on the official LoL esports Twitch and YouTube channels.
