In June, Riot Games announced substantial changes to the League of Legends esports ecosystem, beginning in 2025. It included moving the Mid-Season Invitational to July, which sparked rumors it might be a part of the Esports World Cup and held in the Middle East. However, Riot has debunked the rumor.
In an X post on July 11, Chris Greeley, global head of strategy for League Esports, reassured fans MSI won’t take place in the Middle East. “MSI’s move to July was in the works before we were aware of the EWC. While the timing is certainly coincidental, I can say with certainty that MSI 2025 is not taking place anywhere in the Middle East (and it isn’t on the roadmap at this point for future years),” Greeley wrote.
The Esports World Cup made its debut this year. It spans from July 3 to Aug. 25. In that time, dozens of organizations compete in various games, including Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, EA FC 24, and League. Eight teams from the latter participated in the competition, with T1 coming out victorious. The clash of schedules made fans fear that EWC might be a part of MSI or replace it altogether.
In the same thread, Greeley answered one more question regarding League’s new, third international esports tournament. More specifically, he confirmed it won’t be played in the Middle East. The event is scheduled to take place between the first and second split from 2025 onward.
Greeley’s response spread across other social media like Reddit, where fans shared their opinion. “I mean it makes sense. Riot making every League transition into a 3 split system was apparently known by people in the scene in 2022,” one wrote. “Can’t blame people for believing the rumours, I believed them too. MSI and EWC both being during July was just too… coincidental,” another added.
Others believe Riot’s approach still may change due to the supposed jaw-dropping amounts of money reportedly being offered by the Saudi Arabian government. “I still think ESL/Saudi will end up playing a part in League though. Their [They’re] simply throwing out too much money for companies to resist and now that the orgs have gotten a taste of that Saudi money their [they’re] gonna push Riot hard,” one fan wrote.
They have a point. For participating in a four-day Esports World Cup, T1 claimed an astronomical prize of $400,000, according to Leaguepedia. Meanwhile, the winners of MSI 2024, Gen.G, brought home $50,000. The event ran for almost three weeks.
The initial news about changes in LoL Esports ecosystem from 2025 onwards was shared a month ago, and since then not many details have been shared. The locations of three international events in the year remain a mystery, for example. We’re certain the game developer will share more information in the coming months, though.
