Worlds 2025 Unpacked: Your Guide to the League of Legends Play-In, Swiss, and Knockout Format

Worlds 2025 is off and running, and T1 showed up early with their game face on. They smacked Invictus Gaming 3-1 in a quick Play-In and grabbed the last ticket into the main field. Now the fun part starts: the Swiss Stage. If you have questions about how this thing actually works (fair), here is the clean version.

The short version

• Dates and cities: The tournament runs Oct 14 through Nov 9 across Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu. The Swiss Stage hits Oct 15-25. Knockouts run Oct 28-Nov 9. The final is in Chengdu on Nov 9.
• Play-In: One best-of-five between the #4 seeds from the LCK and LPL. Every region gets 3 Worlds slots; the top two regions get 1 extra each, which is how we got a #4 vs #4 showdown. T1 (LCK) beat Invictus Gaming (LPL) 3-1 to round out the Swiss field.
• Swiss Stage (16 teams): Up to five rounds. Each round you face a team with the same current record. Early rounds are best-of-1. Starting in Round 3, any match that would send you through or send you home becomes a best-of-three. Hit 3 wins, you advance. Hit 3 losses, you are out.
• Knockout Stage (top 8): Single-elimination bracket, all best-of-five. The two teams that go 3-0 in Swiss get a seeding perk by drawing teams that went 3-2. Most of the Knockout action is in Shanghai, with the championship match in Chengdu.
• Fearless Draft twist: In any best-of series during the Play-In and Knockouts, you cannot pick a champion you already used earlier in that same series. So no repeat comfort champs. Note: this rule is not used during the Swiss Stage, even when those matches switch to best-of-three.

What just happened: T1 clears the gate

Day one was a single-purpose Play-In: settle which fourth seed gets in. T1, repping the LCK as that extra seed, took out Invictus Gaming, the LPL’s fourth seed, 3-1. That win plugged T1 into the Swiss Stage and locked the full 16-team lineup.

How the Swiss Stage actually works

The Swiss setup (Oct 15-25) is designed to sort the field without making everyone play everyone. Every team starts 0-0 and is paired against a team with the same record each round. Rounds 1 and 2 are best-of-1, which is chaotic by design.

From Round 3 on, whenever a match could either eliminate you or qualify you for Knockouts, it upgrades to a best-of-three. You keep playing until you either hit three wins (you are in) or three losses (you are done). It is a clean, high-pressure filter that gets us to eight teams fast.

Knockouts, and why going 3-0 matters

Knockouts (Oct 28-Nov 9) are classic high-stakes: single-elim, all best-of-five. The two teams that blitz through Swiss at 3-0 get a tangible reward by drawing 3-2 opponents to start. Most of those series happen in Shanghai; then everything shifts to Chengdu for the final, where someone lifts the Summoner’s Cup on Nov 9.

The new wrinkle: Fearless Draft

This is the big change this year, and it is exactly what it sounds like: in best-of series during the Play-In and the Knockout rounds, neither team can pick a champion they have already used earlier in that series. If you win with a champ in Game 1, you cannot touch it again in Games 2-5. That pushes teams to show real depth and prepped strategies instead of spamming the same comfort picks.

One slightly nerdy detail that could trip people up: even though the Swiss Stage does have best-of-threes from Round 3 onward, Fearless Draft does not apply there. It only kicks in for the Play-In and the Knockouts.

So, who you got?

We are officially in the thick of it, with the Swiss Stage underway and chaos guaranteed. Who are you riding with to take the Cup?