League of Legends is one of the most popular esports in the world, with a sprawling fandom and a large tournament circuit with leagues worldwide.
So, who are League of Legends fans, and what are they betting on? Abios has looked at betting turnover data from the Kambi network during H1 2024 data to determine what teams, players and matches League of Legends fans have bet on the most, acting as a guiding light ahead of large-scale events such as Worlds.
League of Legends Season Structure
Tencent-owned Riot Games runs League of Legends, the game, and LoL esports, its competitive arm. The company has created a consistent tournament circuit full of high-level League of Legends action across all corners of the world.
The top regions include LPL (China) and LCK (South Korea), which generally host the highest-caliber players and teams. These are joined by runner-up regions such as LEC (Europe) and LCS (United States).
Every region has its Spring Split, with the top-performing teams from each region clashing in the Mid-Season Invitational. After the winner is crowned, each region holds their individual Summer Splits. The best teams from every region will ultimately qualify for the League of Legends World Championship at the end of the season.
Riot has announced that there will be some major structural changes for the 2025 competitive season, including an entirely new international event and combined regions. Learn more about what to expect here.
“Worlds” League of Legends World Championships
The World Championships is the culmination of the entire League of Legends season. The teams with the best performances compete to win the championship title and a big chunk of the $2.25 million prize pool. The game’s world championship is seen by fans worldwide as it is typically a grand spectacle and allows enthusiasts to watch the best team of the year be determined.
RELATED: Dota 2 vs LoL: Which game is harder?
Last year, T1 defeated Weibo Gaming with a convincing 3-0 record. It was the South Korean team’s fourth championship title.
“MSI” Mid-Season Invitationals
MSI is the first look at the year’s top teams clashing on an international stage. While it doesn’t really impact what happens during the Summer Split or Worlds, it’s a time to see the best teams of each region compete against one another.
Get expert insights as Abios’ long-term Esports Trading Supervisor, Gonçalo Bento, discusses trading the Mid-Season Invitationals here.
League of Legends Viewership
League of Legends boasts one of the highest viewership numbers of any esports title. Of course, not every region is as dedicated to watching LoL esports. Here are the peak viewership numbers for the 2024 Spring and 2023 Summer Splits for South Korea, Europe and the United States.
2023 Summer Split Peak Viewership
- LCK, South Korea – 1,528,729
- LEC, Europe – 343,576
- LCS, United States – 223,943
2024 Spring Split Peak Viewership
- LCK, South Korea – 2,656,938
- LEC, Europe – 593,554
- LCS, United States – 246,184
What’s interesting is that all the numbers from 2024 are up from the period before, Summer Split 2023. The American League will see changes for the upcoming 2025 circuit, which can potentially boost viewership and engagement for the region further as well.
“MSI” and “Worlds” viewership
Worlds 2023 broke viewership records with over 6.4 million peak viewers during the Finals match between T1 and Weibo Gaming.
As for MSI, the peak viewership in 2023 was almost 2.3 million viewers, showing that all countries come together to watch compared to the Splits. In fact, 2024’s MSI increased to around 2.8 million peak viewers.
Esports Betting & Data
With 11+ years of experience in esports, Abios monitors League of Legends matches daily with automated and manually edited data feeds, gathering insights and supplying customers around the world with in-depth esports data.
For our esports odds, Abios has access to official League of Legends tournament data through our partnership with GRID. This allows us to create markets with high uptime for events such as Worlds, MSI and more.
League of Legends Betting Data
As part of Kambi, Abios has gathered network data on fans’ betting preferences and behaviours from H1 2024, including top bet offers, live vs pre-match split and top teams, matches and players to bet on.
Live Betting vs. Pre-Match Betting in League of Legends
The live betting trend in esports continues for League of Legends. In difference to Counter-Strike or VALORANT, which are both round-based, MOBA titles such as League of Legends or Dota 2 are more linear.
While more kills and action tend to ramp up toward the later stages of the game, early ganks and lane domination can set the tone of the match. As such, bet offers such as “Team to get most kills” or “Match winner” can see interest throughout the match.
| Live | 55% |
| Pre-match | 45% |
Most bet-on markets in League of Legends
While Match Winner is still the most popular bet offer in League of Legends, there are several interesting markets that fans also bet on. For instance, Total Minutes and Total Champion Kills can see high volumes on occasion. This makes sense, as it can vary a lot depending on team composition, dominance and fights, ultimately making them interesting to bet on.
| Match Winner | 73% |
| Map Handicap | 7% |
| Total Minutes | 4% |
| Total Champion Kills | 4% |
| Champion Kills Handicap | 3% |
Top Teams, Players, and Matches People Bet on in League of Legends
Not every tournament, team, and player gets the same amount of attention from esports bettors. Popular teams with great records or with great potential are usually stand-outs. Players who consistently make amazing plays or rack up kills are also what bettors keep their eye on.
Top Matches in League of Legends H1 2024
| Team 1 | Team 2 | League | Match |
| Bilibili Gaming | T1 | MSI | Lower-Bracket Final |
| Gen.G | Bilibili Gaming | MSI | Grand Final |
| FunPlus Phoenix | Ninjas in Pyjamas | LPL | Upper-Bracket Quarter Finals |
| T1 | G2 Esports | MSI | Lower-Bracket Semifinal |
| Gen.G | Bilibili Gaming | MSI | Upper-Bracket Final |
Top Teams in League of Legends H1 2024
| Team | % |
| Bilibili Gaming | 5% |
| T1 | 5% |
| Gen.G | 5% |
| JD Gaming | 5% |
| G2 Esports | 4% |
Top Teams in League of Legends H1 2024
| Caps | G2 Esports | 5% |
| Canyon | Gen.G | 4% |
| Elk | Bilibili Gaming | 4% |
| Bin | Bilibili Gaming | 3% |
| Xun | Bilibili Gaming | 3% |
Keep an eye on these teams and players going into Worlds, including watching some of their past key matches and paying attention to trades and other changes that could impact performance.
You’ll probably notice betting for League of Legends picking up during MSI and Worlds since these are international events with the best teams from all over the world. Fans are excited to see how they will perform against one another, so be ready for an influx around September when Worlds arrives.
Looking for up-to-date markets and data visualisations for esports? Abios has more than 11 years of experience in esports, providing you with data-driven widgets and an odds feed to take your sportsbook to the next level for popular titles like League of Legends, VALORANT, CS2, and Dota 2. Read more here.
