The biggest League of Legends tournaments left to watch in 2020

Even though the 2020 World Championship is over and most professional LoL teams have entered the offseason, there are still some exciting tournaments worth keeping an eye on. 

Entertaining League of Legends doesn’t have to come from the absolute best teams in the world, which is why it’s time to look at some of the remaining tournaments left in 2020. League of Legends is still being played all around the world, with upcoming talents now in the spotlight. 

NEST 2020

The first tournament that is a must-watch for dedicated League of Legends fans is the Chinese NEST 2020. The tournament recently started on November 9 and contains 12 teams from the LPL. 

The teams are a good mix of what the league has to present and most teams are prioritizing young rookies to give them a chance to prove themselves. Some of the LPL star players are still playing to guide the young talent on Summoner’s Rift, but a lot of new names are going to pop up on the screen. 

The 12 teams are seeded in four groups with three different teams in each group. It’s a single round-robin format, which means that every team will have to play two best-of-three series. A 2-0 result gives the winner three points and the loser get’s none. A 2-1 result gives the winner three points and the loser one. In this way, the rather short group stage will be determined by points and every game counts. 

The two best teams from each group advance to the playoffs stage. The group stage is being held online, but the playoffs stage is expected to take place in an offline environment but likely without a crowd. 

Among the 12 teams are names such as FunPlus Phoenix, RNG, Suning, Invictus Gaming, and other prominent organizations. The tournament is only streamed in Chinese and can be followed on Huya. 

NEST 2020 schedule

Iberian Cup 2020

The Iberian Cup 2020 is entering its final stages and there are plenty of reasons to go watch it. Some of the best talent in the Spanish league is fighting for the Iberian Cup trophy and the €8,000 that is up for grabs. So far, a lot of upsets have happened during the tournament, and these upsets might continue in the semifinals and final. 

A total of 20 teams started in the group stage and now it’s down to the top four. Those four teams entering the semifinals are G2 Arctic, MAD Lions Madrid, Vodafone Giants, and big surprise SLO REJECTS. 

Three of the teams are already known as some of the best in the Spanish LVP SLO league, but SLO REJECTS is a newcomer. The team was created to participate in the Iberian Cup 2020 and is a mix of players who didn’t manage to find another team for the tournament. It’s a true mix team, and they have been performing better than anyone could have expected. 

The mix team is facing G2 Arctic in the semifinals, while giants MAD Lions Madrid and Vodafone Giants clash in the other semifinal. The last stages of the tournament can be followed on the LVP Twitch channel.  

Official Iberian Cup 2020 website

NLC Fall Open

The Iberian Cup 2020 isn’t the only European LoL tournament that is left in 2020. The top Nordic league, the NLC, is currently running its Fall Open tournament where some of the best organizations from the NLC and Telia Esports Series are participating.

16 teams total are fighting in the NLC Fall Open with a €24,000 prize pool. Eight teams were invited based on performance in the summer season, while the eight other teams have qualified for the event.

The format consists of four groups in which teams play a double-elimination bracket with all matches being best-of-three. The group stage has already been concluded and eight teams are heading into the playoffs. The quarterfinals take place on November 12 and 13, with the big final on November 15. 

The remaining eight teams that have advanced to the playoffs stage are UniQ Esports Club, ENCE, Tricked Esport, Barrage Esports, Dusty, Viking Esports, Absolved, and NVision Esports.    

Official NLC website

2020 All-Star Event

The year will be concluded with the 2020 All-Star Event, where some of the best players from around the world will be participating in various fun game modes and the All-Star showdown on Summoner’s Rift. 

This year will be a bit different than previous years as it will be limited to an online format. Neighboring regions will battle against each other, which means that not all regions will be gathered together as is typical. 

More specifically, the LEC and LCS will be fighting in the western All-Star showdown, while the LPL and LCK will meet in the east. Besides that, all four major regions will be going up against some of the smaller regions in the “Underdog Uprising” portion of the event. This is where the usual wildcard regions will have the chance to go up against the nearest major regions’ players. 

The 2020 All-Star Event will take place from December 18 to 20. As per usual, fans have the chance to vote in their favorite players. Voting is live from November 9 to 17.   

2020 All-Star schedule

The biggest LoL leagues will be back at the beginning of 2021 after the turbulent offseason period is complete.