Riot bring back the old LCS, EU LCS and LCK for League Classic showmatches

League Classic launches globally on Wednesday 29 July at 8:00 AM PT, on Patch 26.15 — and Riot intend to showcase it on stage before then. The first taste came at the MSI Finals, where retired legends including Yiliang "Doublelift" Peng, "Levi", "WeiXiao", Kang "Ambition" Chan-yong, Heo "PawN" Won-seok and Kang "Cpt Jack" Hyung-woo were invited to play the mode's debut event match. Three regional follow-ups are now on the calendar.

North America goes first. LCS CLASSIC: TSM vs CLG takes place on Friday 24 July at the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles, with matches starting at 1:00 PM PDT and tickets on sale from 15 July at 10:00 AM PDT. The fixture speaks for itself — TSM and CLG defined the early NA LCS years, and their rivalry remains the region's founding story. The showmatch is scheduled during the opening week of the LCS Summer Split, and rosters have yet to be confirmed, though names like Søren "Bjergsen" Bjerg are widely expected, while Doublelift — already present at MSI — is tipped to return.

Europe follows a day later. The EULCS Legends Showmatch is set for Saturday 25 July, with rosters and broadcast details still unannounced. The date is no accident of the calendar for French fans: the LEC Summer Roadtrip by Karmine Corp runs from 24 to 26 July at the adidas arena in Paris, where Karmine Corp, G2 Esports, Movistar KOI and Team Vitality play their LEC fixtures in front of a live crowd.

Riot have not confirmed a venue for the showmatch — but if they want an arena atmosphere for their EU LCS revival, one happens to be booked that exact weekend. The Saturday programme currently lists VITA vs G2 at 16:00 and KC vs MKOI at 19:00, which would leave room for an exhibition slot. The MSI showmatch already featured EU LCS figures Paul "SOAZ" Boyer and Bora "YellOwStaR" Kim, could be an obvious foundation for the European lineup.

Korea closes the run after launch. The LCK Legend Match is scheduled for Tuesday 4 August at the Chzzk LoL PARK in Seoul. Nothing has been confirmed on the participants, but fans of the OGN era and the early LCK years can expect familiar names on the Rift.

The MSI showmatch used a special draft overlay recalling the old broadcast style, and the regional events are expected to follow suit.