League of Legends is one of the most popular games in the history of video gaming. Ever since its introduction in 2009, this Multiplayer Online Battle Arena game is considered to be the most iconic esport. The huge popularity of the game led the developer of the game, Riot Games, to organize the first League of Legends World Championship in 2011. The tournament has gained immense popularity ever since, making it one of the most coveted trophies in the esports world.
In 2020, the tenth edition of this championship is being held in Shanghai, China, from the 25th of September. The Finals are scheduled to be held on October 31st. Ever since the tournament started, punters interested in betting on esports have been searching for the best odds on various Worlds 2020 betting sites. Betting on esports has slowly gained popularity and is now one of the most sought after events to bet on.
The venue
The ongoing pandemic, which began in China has had a major impact on the organization of the event. While many thought that just like The International was postponed by Valve, this year’s edition of the World Championships would be delayed. But on 1st August, Riot announced the schedule and venues for their event. Rather than a multi-city event, this year’s tournament is confined to Shanghai, in a `bubble environment´. All the events, except for the finals, will be taking place at the Shanghai Media Tech Studio. The finale is scheduled to be held at the Pudong Football Stadium.
Teams
22 teams from 11 different regions will be competing for the trophy this year. Two teams from the VCS, Team Flash, and GAM sports will be unable to participate due to travel restrictions in place for the pandemic.
How does the tournament work
Play-ins
Out of the 22 teams, 10 teams will compete at the play-in stage in order to qualify for the group stage. These 10 teams are divided into 2 groups of 5 teams each. Teams in each group will compete against each other in a round-robin. The top team in each group qualifies directly for the group stage, while the fifth-placed team is eliminated.
Teams placed 3rd and 4th in each group will play against each other, in order to win a chance to compete against the 2nd placed team in a second round. The winner of this second round will qualify for the group stage.
Group stage
With 12 teams already qualified for the group stage, and 4 more joining in from the play-ins, the 16 teams will be divided into 4 groups. Each team plays a double round-robin against other teams of their group and the top two teams from each group will progress to the play-offs
Play-offs
The first-placed team of each group plays against the second-placed team of another group in order to qualify for the semi-finals.
The prize pool
Riot has not yet announced the final figure yet, as the total prize depends on the sale of in-game merchandise. But the base prize pool is expected to be approximately 2.5 million dollars, which will be divided amongst the teams based on their final ranking. The winning team will get the biggest share of 25%, and the Summoner’s Cup. The pay-out ratio has been slightly tweaked this year in order to accommodate the VCS teams which are unable to participate.
Where to watch?
All the matches will be live-streamed on Riot Games’ Twitch channel as well as LoLesports channel on YouTube.
With half the tournament over and playoffs set to begin, the tournament has reached an exciting stage, and the audience can hardly wait to find out which team will be the next Champion!
This is a Paid Post.