| 2026 LEC season | |
|---|---|
| League | LEC |
| Sport | League of Legends |
| Duration | TBD |
| Teams | 12 (LEC Versus) 10 (Spring & Summer) |
| LEC Versus | |
| Spring | |
| Summer | |
The 2026 LEC season will be the upcoming 14th season of the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC), a professional esports league for the video game League of Legends . It will be the first LEC season since 2018, then known as the European League Championship Series (EU LCS), to feature teams from the Tier 2 EMEA Regional Leagues (ERLs), as two teams were invited to compete in the league's first split.
The season will begin in January 2026.
On 23 October 2025, the LEC announced that the Winter Split would be removed and will be replaced with the "LEC Versus" tournament, featuring the ten (10) LEC partner teams and two (2) EMEA Regional League (ERL) teams. The two invited teams will only compete in the said event but not in the Spring and Summer splits, as they will be returning to their respective leagues after the tournament. [1]
For the LEC Versus event, twelve teams will compete. Aside from the ten (10) LEC teams, two (2) EMEA Regional League (ERL) teams will be invited. One of which is either Karmine Corp Blue (academy team of Karmine Corp) of the Ligue Française de League of Legends (LFL) or Los Heretics (academy team of Team Heretics) of the LVP Superliga as the 2025 EMEA Masters Summer Split champions.
The other invited team is Los Ratones of the Northern League of Legends Championship (NLC), founded and coached by former LEC player and caster Marc "Caedrel" Lamont, as the best performing team across the ERLs during the 2025 EMEA Masters season. [2] Both teams will be eligible to qualify for the 2026 First Stand Tournament in Brazil.
Both the Spring and Summer splits will follow the same format, removing the groups format from the 2025 Summer split. [3]
The LEC Versus event will feature twelve (12) teams competing in a single-round robin tournament where all matches will be played in best-of-ones. The top eight (8) teams will qualify for the playoffs, which will be an eight-team Double-elimination tournament bracket. Matches in the first two upper and lower rounds will be contested in best-of-threes, while subsequent matches until the finals will be played in best-of-fives. The winner of the LEC Versus event will represent the league as its lone representative at the 2026 First Stand Tournament. [3]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PCT | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fnatic | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | Advance to playoffs |
| 2 | G2 Esports | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 3 | GIANTX | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 4 | Karmine Corp | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 5 | Los Ratones | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 6 | Movistar KOI | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 7 | Natus Vincere | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 8 | SK Gaming | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 9 | Team BDS | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 10 | Team Heretics | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 11 | Team Vitality | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 12 | TBD (Karmine Corp Blue or Los Heretics) | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
The Spring Split will feature the ten (10) LEC partner teams, where they will compete in a single-round robin tournament where all matches will be played in best-of-threes. The top six (6) teams will advance to the playoffs. The playoffs will be contested in a Double-elimination tournament bracket, where the top (4) teams in the standings being seeded in the upper round and the next two (2) teams in the lower round. All matches will be played in best-of-fives. The finalists of the Spring Split will qualify for the 2026 Mid-Season Invitational. [3]
Unlike the previous season, the Summer split will follow the Spring format, where the same ten (10) competing teams will face each other in a single-round robin tournament of best-of-three matches. The top six (6) teams will advance to the playoffs, applying the same format and team seeding principles as the Spring split. All matches will be played in best-of-fives, with the top three (3) teams in the playoffs securing qualification for the 2026 League of Legends World Championship. If an LEC team finishes as a finalist at the 2026 Mid-Season Invitational, a fourth slot will be unlocked for the league. [3]