Europe’s premier League of Legends competition returns this summer with the 2025 LEC Summer Split, beginning Aug. 2 and climaxing with live finals in Madrid on Sept. 26–28. The season opens with ten teams divided into two groups of five. Each squad will play its four group opponents in best-of-three matches. The top two from each group advance directly to the playoffs’ upper bracket, while the third- and fourth-place teams cross over in best-of-five series to claim the final two upper-bracket spots. From there, the four upper-bracket qualifiers compete in a double-elimination format; a single loss in the lower bracket ends the campaign.

Following a one-week intermission after the regular season, six teams will battle in a gauntlet of best-of-five matches to determine the LEC champions and the region’s three qualifiers for the 2025 World Championship. With Championship Points retired, only Summer performance will decide which teams—be it perennial contenders G2 Esports and Fnatic or rising forces Karmine Corp and Movistar KOI—earn the trip to Worlds.

Summer entrants will include new franchise Natus Vincere (NAVI), joining the existing nine after compatriots Movistar KOI and G2 Esports represented the LEC at the Mid-Season Invitational in Vancouver starting June 27. Their return from Canada will bolster the league’s momentum as Madrid prepares to host its first LEC finals.

Fans can purchase tickets for the first three weeks of regular-season play at Berlin’s Riot Games Arena beginning July 15 at 6 p.m. CEST, with additional weekly releases every Tuesday at the same time. Limited tickets remain for the Madrid finals, available via Ticketmaster.

As Europe’s summer split unfolds, every match carries heightened significance on the road to Worlds. With rosters shaking up and new rivals emerging, the 2025 Summer Split promises intense competition and high stakes for EMEA’s best.