Shenzhen, China set to serve as host city for Worlds 2021 finals

The grand finals of the 2021 League of Legends World Championship will take place in Shenzhen, China, Riot Games announced today.

This year will mark the second consecutive season in which the World Championship will take place in China. Normally, Riot moves the event around the world on a year-to-year basis. But because of the circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the international scene will instead attempt to bring an authentic Worlds experience to China in 2021. 

Last season, the finals took place in Shanghai with a restricted audience present in a limited capacity. The rest of the tournament was played in a bubble-like environment with no fans at all in attendance. Presumably, the circumstances will be different later this season. 

This year will mark the third time overall that Worlds will be played in China, bringing the region into a deadlock tie with North America and Europe for the record of most World Championships hosted. 

Traditionally, Worlds serves as a tour across the host country, with the grand finals acting as the culmination of a month-long event. In 2017, the tournament spanned across China, stopping in Wuhan, Guangzhou, and Shanghai before eventually ending in Beijing. At this time, the full lineup of cities set to be featured during the 2021 World Championship has yet to be announced.

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