What Riot Games did was like a volcano magma eruption. It was announced those League of Legends Worlds 2025 are indeed going back to China, and the communities have been abuzz with excitement, nostalgia, and, heh-heh, some fiery opinions with Realtors. The announcement went for an instant reaction from some very excited players, some who were in awe of the idea while others were totally against the idea of yet another Worlds in China.
The last time China hosted Worlds was in 2020, with Worlds being held in an almost empty stadium as per anti-pandemic restrictions laid down at the time. This time the people are demanding full blast glitz and glamour because China really does know how to put up a show. The opening ceremonies in China hardly ever disappoint, combining world-class shows with visuals that would challenge any international cinema and, to top it all, out of nowhere within the event, even surprise celebrity appearances have graced the occasion. UFREAK said it was a “must-see,” and I do not think anyone would disagree.
Contrarily, it is not the perfect cup of tea for everyone. Time zones are already an annoyance for some. Julian, speaking probably from one of the China-friendly zones, cheered on the decision: “Finally, a friendly timezone (again).” Meanwhile, NEITSWFT, maybe in Europe, or maybe the Americas, snarled about the “slightly unfriendly” 5-hour difference. Waking up at 4 AM for quarterfinals? Let’s just say, a handful would claim to be enjoying that.
Capacity has been another area of concern. David Szajnuk determined Play-Ins/Swiss would fix for 2,000, another 18,000 for Knockouts, and yet another 18,000 for Finals. That’s a lot of screaming fans, and judging from the crowd energy shown on camera from China, the output would be off the charts. Some, however, like Notorious FOP, feel it’s an issue of scheduling: “I hope we don’t have to wait a week for the final,” they tweeted, bringing back the memory of that excruciatingly long downtime between the semis and finals the past few years.
Then there was the nostalgia gang. Cabinetbenny and Hoddedman went down a rabbit hole trying to figure out which Worlds has been the best, counting S4, S7, 2019, and 2024 as worthy candidates. And then there’s Tom, who boldly said, “O yea Gen G winning it all,” which really ain’t that crazy of an opinion, considering the level Gen G has been playing at the last few years.
Never ever will a gaming announcement be complete without a dash of humor. Very seldom will you find an opportunity such as this one to inject some cheeky sarcasm into soliciting “The Worlds Biggest Library” from RalphSotto74375, alluding to what are usually-goody-goody Chinese crowds. C9MSK8 then jokingly chimed in questioning if Panda Express would be sponsoring the event. (Hey, stranger things have happened.)
So what is the verdict? China gets yet another chance at hosting Worlds and whether you are hype for the opening ceremony or sore about the time zones or just here to meme potential sponsors, one thing is for sure-2025 is going to be crazy.
Now, who will start the countdown?
