LoL Esports Announces First Stand Tournament for 2025

During the League of Legends Worlds 2024 Media Day, Riot Games announced the roll out of First Stand, a brand new global event for the 2025 competitive calendar. According to a recent blog post, First Stand "will see teams from around the world face off in early-season battles, setting the tone for the competition ahead."

The tournament is set to take place at the conclusion of Split 1, from March 10-16, 2025, at LoL Park in Seoul, Korea.

So what makes the First Stand so special? Well, the anticipated Fearless Draft will make is debut in Split 1 across all regions, and will play a huge part in the upcoming First Stand tournament. 

This new format is designed to test a team's strategy in some of the most intense ways possible. The key to this is in champion selection, where once a champion has been selected it becomes unavailable for both teams for the remainder of the series. 

With each game, players will see 10 "Fearless Bans" added, and the usual 10 bans from the pick/ban will stay in play. It pushes players to adapt a wider range in the champion pool, and will have teams planning their strategies in new ways right up to Game 5.

The First Stand tournament will be a brand new introduction for the LoL Esports 2025 calendar.