The 2023 League of Legends season has started with two big announcements: changes to both the MSI and Worlds formats with expanded teams attending and a Swiss stage replacing the group stage. This has given some fans the changes they have asked for, such as double elimination and the importance of each and every match. For 2023, all games on the international stage will have significance for each team competing, with a greater emphasis on the growth of minor regions and the development of talent throughout the year.
Flashback to the play-in stage of Worlds 2022: of the 12 teams participating, five were from major regions and seven from minor regions. The first round eliminated four minor region teams, and the second round eliminated the rest of them, with all teams from the major regions claiming the play-in spots. In the group stage, only two teams represented the minor regions: GAM Esports from the VCS and CTBC Flying Oyster from the PCS. Altogether, the minor regions played a combined total of 52 games in the play-ins, which increased to 64 with the group stage.