It’s still too early for Riot Games to reveal where the 2025 LEC Season Finals will take place, but it’s never too early to hype it up. While fans eagerly await the official announcement, an hint from official sources might fuel hopes for some—while extinguishing the dreams of others.
In the past two years, the LEC Season Finals served as the grand conclusion to the year, but with the 2025 format changes Riot is reverting to a simpler roadshow event, bringing the excitement of live competition to fans without an additional mini-tournament attached to it. However, the question of which city will host the highly anticipated season-finale of the region remains. But in an exclusive sneak peek for Dot Esports, LEC commissioner Maximilian Schmidt dropped a hint that will surely break some hearts. “For the roadshow of the 2025 LEC we’ll be returning to a place we haven’t hosted a roadshow in quite some time,” he said. While he avoided revealing the exact city prior to the official announcement, Schmidt’s hint narrows down the possibility to less than 15 cities.
On the other hand, for those hoping for a completely new city—such as Prague, Vienna, or even Rome—the statement might be disappointing. While the LEC has fans across every country in Europe, not all have had the chance to host an event. It just might come down to a decision reflecting the size of local esports communities. France and Spain have consistently drawn massive, passionate crowds, while smaller regions like Italy or Austria may not yet have the numbers needed to justify a large-scale regional event.
Looking at past locations, the LEC and previously the EU LCS have a long history of traveling across EMEA, from Cologne to Madrid, moving to Stockholm, Rotterdam, Kraków, Hamburg, and Paris before the LEC even had it’s current name. The LEC era expanded the list further, bringing finals to Copenhagen, Athens, Malmö, Montpellier, and more recently Munich. Each of these cities played a key role in shaping the legacy of European League of Legends, and with Schmidt’s hint suggesting that a familiar location will soon reclaim the spotlight, the right guess might be easy to make knowing how Riot chooses their hosting cities.
The city must have strong transportation infrastructure, including a well-connected international airport and efficient public transit to ensure smooth travel for everyone. A modern arena with a minimum capacity of around 5K seats minimum is essential and ideally there will be a nearby spacious venue to host the LEC XPO. Accommodations close to the venue is another major consideration, but easy to pass considering Riot’s partnership with Marriott Bonvoy. Cities with multiple hotels from that chain, ideally located near the arena, are particularly appealing as they can provide convenient lodging for players, staff, and traveling fans while leveraging the partnership.
With these criteria in mind, cities with a strong esports presence, passionate local fanbases, and the ability to accommodate thousands of attendees seamlessly are the most likely candidates. But that criteria seems to fit almost every city Riot has ever held a regional event in.
Considering the criteria and the likelihood that Riot won’t return to a city where they’ve held an event recently, here’s our ranking of potential locations for the 2025 LEC Roadshow, from most to least likely:
- Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Athens, Greece
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Paris, France
- Madrid, Spain
- Kraków, Poland
- Hamburg, Germany
- Cologne, germany
- Malmö, Sweden
- Montpellier, France
- Munich, Germany
With Riot expected to officially reveal the 2025 location later in the year, the speculation has only just begun. Some fans may be thrilled by the idea of revisiting a legendary venue, while others will have to put their hopes of a brand-new city on hold.
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