Worlds 2026 Swiss Stage: Round 1 draw on Oct. 18, the four draw tiers, format and times in Allen

Worlds 2026 moves from Los Angeles to Texas. Here’s when the Swiss Stage starts, how the Round 1 draw works and who can face whom.

When is the Worlds 2026 Swiss Stage?

From Friday, Oct. 23, to Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas, north of Dallas. Riot’s schedule lists the times in Central time, an hour behind ET. On Oct. 23 to 26, play starts at 1 p.m. ET, or 10 a.m. PT. After a day off on Oct. 27, the Swiss Stage resumes on Oct. 28 at 4 p.m. ET, and it stays at 4 p.m. through Oct. 30. The last Swiss day, Oct. 31, starts at 1 p.m. ET.

Europe changes its clocks on Oct. 25, so the start is 7 p.m. CEST on Oct. 23 and 24, 6 p.m. CET on Oct. 25, 26 and 31, and 9 p.m. CET on Oct. 28 to 30. In Korea, the early days start at 2 a.m. the next morning and the late days at 5 a.m.

The Round 1 draw on Oct. 18

The Round 1 matchups come from a random draw after the last Play-In series in Los Angeles, Karmine Corp vs. MVK Esports, on Sunday, Oct. 18, at 2 p.m. ET. The winner takes the only open spot in the Swiss Stage, next to 15 teams that qualified directly.

Riot split the field into four draw tiers. Tier 1 holds Gen.G, Anyone’s Legend, Team Liquid Alienware and G2 Esports. Tier 2 holds LOS, Team Secret Whales, Hanwha Life Esports and Bilibili Gaming. Tier 3 holds LYON, Movistar KOI, T1 and Top Esports, and Tier 4 holds CTBC Flying Oyster, Invictus Gaming, Dplus Kia and the Play-In winner.

Tier 1 teams face Tier 4 teams, and Tier 2 teams face Tier 3 teams. Two teams from the same league can’t meet in Round 1, which rules out a few pairings. Gen.G can’t draw Dplus Kia, Anyone’s Legend can’t draw Invictus Gaming, and G2 Esports can’t draw Karmine Corp if the French team gets through. In the other half, Hanwha Life Esports can’t draw T1, and Bilibili Gaming can’t draw Top Esports. So T1, which won the last three World Championships, opens against LOS, Team Secret Whales or Bilibili Gaming.

How the Swiss format works

The Swiss Stage runs for up to five rounds. From Round 2 on, teams with the same record play each other, so a 1-0 team faces another 1-0 team, and nobody plays the same opponent twice. Same-league matchups are allowed from Round 2. Riot draws each new round on Oct. 23, Oct. 24, Oct. 26 and Oct. 30.

Three match wins sends a team to the quarterfinals, and three losses ends its Worlds. That leaves eight teams for the knockout rounds. The Swiss Stage opens with best-of-one games on Oct. 23, and the first best-of-three series come on Oct. 25.

The quarterfinal draw follows on Oct. 31. The two teams that go 3-0 are drawn against two of the 3-2 teams, and the other four teams are paired at random. The quarterfinals run from Nov. 3 to 6 and the semifinals on Nov. 7 and 8, all in Allen and all best-of-five.

Pick’Ems for the Swiss Stage

Worlds 2026 Pick’Ems, powered by AWS, run on lolesports.com and in the League of Legends client. Swiss Stage picks open on Oct. 18 and lock before the first Swiss match on Oct. 23. Knockout picks open on Oct. 31 and lock before the first quarterfinal on Nov. 3. Scores are final after the championship match on Nov. 14, and Riot aims to hand out rewards within 48 hours. You need a Riot account to play, and the game isn’t available in every region, including those where a local publisher runs League of Legends, such as China.

Tickets and rules in Allen

Ticketmaster sells the Allen dates, including all eight Swiss days, and Riot hasn’t published face-value prices. Guests under 14 need an adult aged 19 or older, and children under 2 don’t need a ticket. Only small bags under 4.5 by 8.5 inches and clear bags under 14 by 14 by 6 inches are allowed, and the venue can’t store belongings. You can leave and come back with a wristband on Swiss days, which isn’t allowed during the quarterfinals and semifinals. Outside food and drink, laptops and tablets aren’t allowed. Cosplay is welcome, but face coverings and face paint aren’t, and signs can’t be larger than 60 by 60 centimeters.

Every match and result is on our Worlds 2026 schedule page, and our Worlds 2026 finals page covers the Nov. 14 final at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

This page is updated as soon as Riot holds the Round 1 draw on Oct. 18 and after every Swiss round.