For League of Legends fans looking to attend the World Championships this year, here’s some good news. Riot Korea says that they will announce the schedule and venue of Worlds 2018 soon, possibly even next week.
This has been an announcement fans were waiting a while for. This is because Riot had released last year’s Worlds venue and schedule very early in 2017. Unfortunately, there was a complete blackout on this year’s World Championships until this July. The only information that Riot Games would share is that the host country would be South Korea.
Many fans that were planning to go had many complaints. Trips to Korea need plenty of time for planning, especially for people attending from different countries. Also, North American fans were also angry that a late announcement would also affect patrons.
Riot Korea would release an official statement on the subject, saying:
To hold a big event like Worlds properly, the venue should be selected very carefully, considering technological issues, stage management, security, etc. Even if the venue fulfills all of the considerations, the original home sports team of the venue has priority. They’ve been using the venue regularly, so it was difficult to rent the venue even if it was for one of the biggest esports events like Worlds. Even so, we’re doing our best to rent the best space for the event, and we think that we’ll be able to let everyone know soon.
Hopefully people will get the news they need soon, so they can begin their planning for the event.
Possible Venues in Korea?
There are multiple places that could host the League of Legends World Championships in Korea. Riot Games would have to choose relatively large stadiums or arenas, due to the huge population of League of Legends fans in Korea. Each stage of the competition is usually hosted by a different city, in a different venue.
Now, the Play-ins and Group Stages would usually play out in a smaller venue than the Grand Finals. For last year’s Worlds, the Group Stages would play out at the Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium. The arena could hold up to 13,000 people. For this year’s Worlds, a possible venue for the Group Stage or Quarterfinals could be the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, Korea. It is usually host to the Nexen Heroes, a Korean baseball team. It was built in 2015, and hold up to 25,000 specators.
The Grand Finals for the World Championship has only two possible venues in my mind: Korea’s Seoul Olympic Stadium or the Seoul World Cup Stadium. Both venues can hold up to 69,950 people and 66,704 people respectively. Also, both stadium are up to standard for the grandeur and class that Riot Games would want for their biggest event of the year. As the name suggests, the Seoul Olympic Stadium was host to 10th Asian Games, and then the Olympics in 1988. However, it has not been used to stage a major world sporting event since then. However, it has been host to multiple concerts, including the uber-popular Korean pop group, BTS.
On the other hand, the Seoul World Cup Stadium was host to the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup. FC Seoul, the city’s home soccer team, also plays here. Like the Olympic Stadium, the SWCS was also host to multiple concerts as well.
Where do you think the World Championships will be held this year? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! If you want more League of Legends content, check us out here!
