The
League of Legends World Championship, commonly known as
Worlds, is the most prestigious event of the year in the competitive
LoL scene. Held annually at the end of the season, it brings together the best teams from every region to compete on the global stage. It’s a one-of-a-kind spectacle that showcases the world’s top-tier talent in one epic tournament. While it's no secret that
T1 holds the record for the most Worlds titles by a significant margin, they are not the team with the most appearances. That distinction goes to
Fnatic, which has participated in
12 out of the 14 World Championships since the tournament’s inception in 2011.
The oldest team in Europe—and one of the oldest in the entire global
League of Legends ecosystem—was already present at the very
first World Championship, held at DreamHack in Sweden in 2011, and even won it. However, that title is not fully recognized by everyone, as the game had not yet included all Asian regions, such as South Korea. Fnatic missed the second edition of Worlds, finishing only 4th at the EU Regional Finals in Season 2, and missed out again in 2016—the first year in their history where the team no longer dominated Europe, overtaken by
G2 Esports, H2K, and Splyce.
Although
Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok is the player with the most Worlds appearances, T1 is only the third most frequently qualified organization, behind Cloud9. This highlights the longevity and domestic dominance of both teams over time. Cloud9 has qualified 10 times, missing only the 2020 edition, while T1 has qualified 9 times, missing 2014, 2018, and 2020. They are closely followed by a few historic organizations that either no longer exist, like TSM, or no longer perform at the same level, such as RNG or EDward Gaming in the LPL. Looking at this ranking, it is clear that the Chinese league is by far the most unstable, with new organizations frequently qualifying for Worlds each year.
It remains to be seen how this ranking, which reflects both longevity and regional dominance, will evolve over time. We’re already seeing newer organizations rise into the top 10, such as Dplus KIA and Gen.G—current LCK powerhouses—as well as Team Liquid, which didn’t make its first Worlds appearance until 2018.
