League of Legends Worlds 2026 Prize Pool Set at $5 Million

The 2026 League of Legends World Championship will feature a total prize pool of $5 million.

The prize pool, which will be divided among all 19 participating teams, matches the amount first introduced for the 2025 tournament.

"The complete 2026 League of Legends World Championship prize pool is a whopping $5 million, which will be divided among all the participating teams," according to the report.

The winner of Worlds 2026 will receive the largest share of the prize money, which is one-fifth of the total pool.

Prize money for the remaining teams will be distributed based on their final placement in the tournament.

The $5 million figure represents a significant increase from the mid-2020s but is lower than the peak of $6.45 million awarded at the 2018 World Championship.

Before 2025, the prize pool for the annual championship was $2.225 million from 2019 through 2024.

"From 2019 to 2024, the prize pool for this tournament was $2.225 million," the report states.

The 2018 World Championship prize pool was $6,450,000, and the number was close to $5 million the year before that as well.

The report notes that, "Looking at the game’s popularity in the esports scene, there’s a good chance that the prize pool won’t dip again as it did in the late 2010s."

"Despite beating the rest of the 18 teams, the winner of this competition will only get 1/5th of the total prize pool," the report highlights, adding that this "shows the tournament’s immense scope, ensuring every participating team gets at least something to go home with."

T1 has won the World Championship trophy for the last three years.

The 2026 League of Legends World Championship will begin in Los Angeles on October 15 and conclude in Brooklyn on November 14.

Redington Cybersport reported in October that the draws for the Play-In and Swiss Stage will determine the final team for the Swiss Stage and all initial matchups for the 16-team main event.