It’s official: the 2024 League of Legends World Championship – aka Worlds 2024 – finals will be taking place in London, UK.
This confirms the news first broken by us, Esports News UK, back in May this year that Worlds 2024 would be very likely taking place in London.
Riot Games has today confirmed the news, moments ahead of the Worlds 2023 final (later won by T1 against Weibo Gaming), and has revealed that next year’s finals will be taking place at The O2 Arena on November 2nd 2024.
According to a Riot Games press release sent out today: “The 2024 League of Legends World Championship Finals are destined for London! Scheduled to be hosted at The O2, the world’s most popular live entertainment, leisure and retail destination, the culmination of the world’s largest esports event will arrive in London in the fall of 2024.”
“We’re thrilled to bring the World Final to the UK for the first time,” said Naz Aletaha, Global Head of LoL Esports. “Worlds is a global celebration of the best of League of Legends, and London’s rich history and modern metropolis is a perfect backdrop for the biggest stage in our sport.
“We were blown away by the passion and energy from fans in London throughout the 2023 Mid-Season Invitational, and we’re eager to welcome them to the O2 where our finalists will take the same stage as the many icons who preceded them.”
“We’re thrilled to bring the World Final to the UK for the first time. Worlds is a global celebration of the best of League of Legends, and London’s rich history and modern metropolis is a perfect backdrop for the biggest stage in our sport.”
Naz Aletaha, Riot Games
The 2023 MSI tournament was held in London’s Copper Box Arena, located in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The event saw a 58% increase in year-on-year viewership from MSI 2022.
The last time the UK hosted a Worlds stop was the quarter finals in 2015 at the SSE Arena in Wembley, now known as the OVO Arena Wembley.
Worlds 2024 finals set for The O2
The O2 is the UK’s second highest seating capacity venue and renowned for hosting legendary artists and bands, including the likes of Adele, Beyoncé, and U2, as well as major sporting events including NBA games and ATP tennis season finales.
The dome structure spans 365 meters in diameter, making it one of the largest of its kind in the world.
“London is a leading destination for esports, and it’s fantastic that we will host the League of Legends World Championship Finals next year,” said Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London.
“It will bring together esports fans from across the globe and also showcase our capital’s utting edge gaming industry. I will continue to do all I can to support esports development and growth in London, as we build a better London for everyone.”
Ticket sales for the 2024 World Final, to be held on November 2nd 2024, will be announced at a later date in 2024.
Riot Games said that ‘other dates, cities, and venues for Worlds 2024 will be shared soon’. It’s previously been rumoured that Paris may host other stages of Worlds 2024.
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
