The second-most-important tournament in the League of Legends circuit, the Mid-Season Invitational, is changing in 2023.
The tournament will come to London, England for the first time and will also undergo a series of changes this year. All the stages of the event will be revamped, with the play-in stage and bracket stage being the only ones left. They will also feature entirely new formats when it comes to the international League competition.
At the same time, more teams from the four major regions will be invited to the tournament. The main goal of all these changes is to create a ground for “additional cross-regional competition,” according to Riot Games.
With the complete rework of the tournament’s format, it’s easy to get lost. But don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Here’s the full breakdown of all format changes coming to the Mid-Season Invitational in 2023.
How many teams will be invited to the Mid-Season Invitational in 2023?
From now on, the event will feature 13 teams, with four major regions (LCS, LEC, LPL, and LCK) having two squads participating in the tournament. The first seeds from these regions will be placed directly in the bracket stage, with the second seed from the LCK (as they are reigning Worlds winners) following a similar path. The other eight teams will battle it out for three bracket stage slots in the play-in stage.
The Mid-Season Invitational’s new play-in stage explained
The play-in stage will feature eight teams, who will be slotted into two even groups. There, the squads will play in a double-elimination bracket, with the 2-0 teams advancing straight to the bracket stage. The winners of the loser’s bracket will play a best-of-five series to determine the third and last team qualifying for the bracket stage.
The Mid-Season Invitational’s new bracket stage explained
The bracket stage will feature 14 best-of-five matches with a double-elimination format. This will increase the number of regional cross-play, while also delivering fans some exciting best-of-five action. With the introduction of this change, every squad will have a second life during the bracket stage.
As of now, there is no exact information as to how the play-in and bracket stages teams will be seeded, but more details should be shared leading up to the event.
