Chris Greeley reveals that Riot Games is pleased with the feedback on First Selection, as well as the roadtrips and The First Stand.
In a roundtable with journalists, Chris Greeley, global head of League of Legends esports, shared insights on Mid-Season Invitational 2026 and World Championship 2026, along with the competitive calendar, regional roadtrips, and the future of The First Stand as a tournament.
First Selection feedback
At the start of 2026, Riot Games introduced the First Selection. “We didn’t want draft or side selection to overly dictate outcomes ultimately. We wanted strategy, preparation, and player identity to really shine through,” Greeley explained. “So far, we’re really pleased with how it’s landed.”
According to Greeley, teams now have more flexibility to build game plans around comfort and opponents’ scouting. “We are now seeing more adaptation, creativity, and meaningful decision-making, and that is exactly what we are aiming for,” he said.
The First Selection will continue to be featured in both regional and international events. As for coach communication during the matches, which has been trialed in some regions,Greeley noted that early feedback has been largely positive.
MSI heads to Daejeon and Worlds to North America
The MSI 2026 is coming to Daejeon, South Korea between June 28 and July 12. As for the LoL Worlds 2026, the tournament is heading to three different cities. Los Angeles, Allen (Texas), and Brooklyn (New York) will host the biggest tournament of the year. You can know more about the formats here.
The First Stand’s future
As the most recent addition to the official League of Legends competitive calendar, there are many doubts about The First Stand and its future. For Greeley, the tournament is a great opportunity to experiment with new formats. After the first event, feedback suggested it felt “too small” and lacked competitiveness, prompting Riot Games to expand the number of teams and raise the level of competition.
In 2026, we also saw a format change, bringing only best-of-five (Bo5) series. “We will keep evaluating until we feel everything is right with The First Stand. So far, everything looks good. The viewership is up, sentiment looks good, and most people seem to be enjoying the event,” he commented.
For some years, many fans didn’t view the Mid-Season Invitational as a major event in the League of Legends calendar, especially compared to Worlds. However, Greeley believes that the mindset has begun to shift, and he welcomes the growing excitement as fans embrace events like The First Stand as well.
In the coming weeks, Riot Games and regional representatives will meet to discuss the future of The First Stand and explore improvements. As for The First Stand 2027, Riot Games has not shared much yet, as preparations for the competition are still underway.
Long competitive calendar and players’ mental health
The 2026 season will be very long for the League of Legends competitive calendar. With the addition of the Esports World Cup, Esports Nations Cup, Asian Games, and other off-season events, the calendar can be exhausting for the teams, staff, and especially the players.
Greeley revealed that Riot has been working closely with the teams to “shelter the players” and prevent burnout. “While from a fan perspective it is great to have more competitions and games, from a team’s perspective it can be really rough,” he said. “We are going to continue talking with teams and evaluating the impact it’s having on them.”
On the other side, while some teams consistently qualify for international events, others miss out entirely, leaving certain organizations without top-level competition for extended periods. “We rely on teams to keep interacting with the fans, making content, while giving their players some time to rest,” he explained. “It’s a very difficult balance overall.”
We will share more updates as soon as Riot Games releases more information.