The 2026 RLCS season is officially next on the calendar. Following Lyon, BLAST and Psyonix have laid out a year that's bigger, earlier, and more format-rich than anything we've seen since the post-League-Play reboot. Here's everything new for 2026.
The schedule
- Season start: November 14, 2025
- Kickoff Weekend LAN — Copenhagen, December 5-7, 2025
- Major 1 — Boston, Agganis Arena, February 19-22, 2026
- Major 2 — Paris, La Défense Arena, May 20-24, 2026
- 1v1 / 2v2 Opens — June & July 2026
- Last Chance Qualifier — July 2-26, 2026
- World Championship — Fort Worth, Dickies Arena, September 15-20, 2026
What's actually new
1. The Kickoff Weekend
A brand-new LAN event before the regular season's first Major. The top 6 teams from Open 1 in both NA and EU travel to Copenhagen for an 8-team stepladder bracket. The winner gets an automatic Boston Major qualification and earns their region an extra qualification slot for both Majors and Worlds.
This is high-leverage: an entire region's Major depth chart can shift based on a single LAN before the season's main qualifiers are even halfway through.
2. 2v2 joins RLCS
After the 1v1 format's successful debut, RLCS is adding a full 2v2 circuit for 2026. Regional Opens in NA, EU, SAM, and MENA, with regional winners qualifying for a 2v2 World Championship in Fort Worth.
For pros, this opens up a third potential championship to chase — and a real scheduling decision about how to balance scrim time across formats. For fans, it's another full season of LAN content beyond the 3v3 circuit.
3. Worlds expands to six days
The 2025 Worlds was already a 5-day event for 20 teams. 2026's gets bumped to six days, with more breathing room between bracket stages and what we expect will be a meaningfully better fan-experience arc across the week.
4. Paris gets three full audience days
La Défense Arena will host the second Major, and unlike the 2024 Major structure that limited audience days, the 2026 Paris Major will have a full three days open to fans on-site. Expect this to be one of the loudest non-Worlds RLCS events in recent memory.
What stays the same
- Two splits, three Opens per split, two Majors, one Worlds.
- The same Open format we ran in 2025 (Swiss → GSL → hybrid elimination).
- 20 teams at Worlds, decided by RLCS points + LCQ.
- BLAST continues as tournament organizer.
Storylines we're already watching
Karmine Corp's response
After back-to-back Worlds disappointments, KC's 2026 has narrative pressure attached from day one. Do they keep the roster? Adjust the coaching staff? Either way, they're going into Copenhagen with the most weight of any team in the field.
NRG's title defense
North America's first World Champion roster in six years now has the unenviable task of defending while every other top region tries to copy what they did. NRG's 2026 is the year they either solidify a dynasty or fall back to "good not great" status.
Team Falcons
One trophy short of completing the MENA breakout. They've made the case at every recent international event. 2026 either delivers, or the conversation shifts to "what's missing on the roster?"
The Kickoff Weekend kicks off in three weeks
We're going to be in Copenhagen for the December 5-7 event. The Open 1 results that decide the participating top 6 in each region are still being played out — we'll have a Kickoff Weekend preview up two weeks from now once the field is locked.
Welcome to the 2026 season. It's already busier than 2025's was.