League of Legends Classic: release date, all champions, and everything else we know

League of Legends Classic is bringing players back to one of the most memorable eras in the game's history, as Riot Games prepares to recreate the feeling of early League. The new mode will return with an experience inspired by Season 3, giving longtime players a chance to revisit a version of the game that helped define the community.

League’s Executive Producer, Paul "Pabro" Bellezza, revealed on MSI broadcast that League Classic was created after years of community requests, with the idea eventually becoming a prototype during Riot's internal Thunderdome hackathon. The mode will launch on July 29th with Patch 26.15, bringing back a selection of champions, gameplay elements, and the original Summoner's Rift map.

League of Legends Classic is a new game mode that recreates the feeling of older League versions, mainly inspired by Season 3 but with also some content from pre and post S3 League. During the MSI 2026 broadcast, Riot explained that the goal was not to create an exact copy of the past, but instead to bring back the parts of old League that players remember most.

The idea started after the community repeatedly asked Riot for a way to experience older versions of League again — like for Twisted Treeline. During a Riot Thunderdome event — a group of Rioters built a prototype based around Season 3, which eventually developed into the League Classic project.

Players can expect slower combat, champions with stronger strengths and weaknesses, classic item builds, old Summoner Spells, and many pre-rework champion kits. However, Riot is also keeping some modern improvements, including updated matchmaking, improved server infrastructure, modern pings, spell buffering — even optional WASD controls.

The mode will focus on recreating how League felt during its early competitive years, rather than simply restoring an old version of the game. This means some elements may be adjusted to make the experience more enjoyable today, while still keeping the identity and gameplay style that made early League popular.

League Classic will officially release on July 29, 2026, alongside Patch 26.15. Riot has not announced it as a separate game, meaning players will access the classic experience through the existing client.

The launch follows two showmatches from EU and NA LCS, with the "LCS CLASSIC: TSM vs. CLG" showmatch broadcasted on July 24th. No information about who will play the EU LCS showmatch has been released yet.

We know that League Classic will launch with Patch 26.15, but the game itself is not being played on a specific past patch. The mode will feature a gameplay environment inspired by the Season 3 era, where champions had different ability kits and the game had different systems — like the old runes.

Riot has not described League Classic as a permanent snapshot of one exact patch, meaning players should expect a version designed around the feeling of early League rather than a perfect recreation of a single day in the game's history.

One of the biggest changes coming with League Classic is the return of systems removed from modern League. Riot confirmed that old-school Runes and Masteries will return alongside iconic classic items and item combinations from the game's early years.

However, Riot is not bringing back the original grind. Players will unlock Runes, Masteries, and additional Rune Pages through Classic Levels, with default pages available from the beginning to ensure everyone can immediately play.

League Classic will have its own progression system separate from modern League accounts, Riot confirmed. Players will earn Classic Levels by playing matches, unlocking rewards including Runes, Masteries, Influence Points, Blue Essence, Rune Pages, and cosmetics.

After reaching Classic Level 10, players will begin the Summoner's Journey, progressing from Salt to Legend through a long-term progression path designed specifically for Classic.

Riot is also bringing back the visual style of early League through Classic Skins. These cosmetics recreate champion appearances from the 2009-2013 era, while Classic Portraits and other rewards will give players additional ways to customize their experience.

Champion base models will also feature old-school ink outlines, and some champions will receive updated animations, sounds, and visual effects to better match their classic kits.

League Classic will launch with 60 champions, including the original 40 champions released with League in 2009 alongside 20 additional champions released between 2009 and 2013. Riot has confirmed that more champions will be added gradually over time instead of releasing the entire Classic roster immediately.

Champions in League Classic will use their older gameplay designs and base skins from past iteration of the game. However, in the MSI showmatch it was shown that if players choose newer skins may still see updated models or reworked visuals, meaning the experience will mix classic gameplay with some modern cosmetic elements.

League Classic will bring back the original champion roster that launched with League of Legends in 2009, with those first 40 champions expected to be part of the experience from the start. These champions represent the foundation of League's early years and will form the core of the classic roster.

The original 40 champions coming to League Classic are:

Beyond the original launch roster, Riot has confirmed that League Classic will also include additional champions released after 2009. In the latest dev blog, Riot confirmed the 20 additional champions coming to League Classic were released between 2009 and 2013.

The newer champions coming to League Classic include:

We'll update this article as more info about League of Legends Classic comes out.