All teams qualified to the Demacia Cup Global Invitational 2026

The Demacia Cup, previously an offseason competition featuring teams from China, is expanding into a much larger international event. Riot Games have announced in August the inaugural Demacia Cup Global Invitational, a new tournament that will bring together teams from major regions that failed to qualify for Worlds.

The tournament will take place in China from October 3 to 17, 2026, beginning with an online group stage before moving offline for the knockout stage. Twelve teams will compete in total: the 5th, 6th, and 7th seeds from the LPL and LCK, the 4th and 5th seeds from the LEC and LCS, and the 4th seed from the LCP and CBLOL.

The main stage of the event will feature a 12-team Swiss Stage, four less teams than the 16-teams Worlds Swiss Stage. This means that just two wins will be sufficient for a playoffs qualifications. In total, teams will compete across four rounds, with the opening round played as best-of-one series. All subsequent rounds will be played in a best-of-three format. The top eight teams will advance to the knockout stage, where they will compete in a single-elimination bracket consisting entirely of best-of-five series.

The Demacia Cup Global Invitational will also introduce a notable new feature: coach comms will be enabled throughout the tournament. Coaches will have designated windows during official matches in which they can communicate directly with their players. This new strategy has already been tested in the LCK and in the LPL.

The tournament will also feature a prize pool of just over $223,000. The winner will take home nearly $90,000, while the runner-up will receive $60,000. The two semifinalists will each earn $26,000, with the four quarterfinalists receiving approximately $5,600 apiece.

Update: This article has been updated to include all participating teams, following Shopify Rebellion and RED Canids securing their qualification on Saturday, September 26.