League Classic Ends in January 2027 After Low Player Retention
Riot Games has scheduled the closure of its League Classic mode for January 2027, concluding its run alongside the end of Season 3, rakyatpos.id reported. The developer stated that while players initially returned to the mode for nostalgia, the majority migrated back to modern queue types over time.
The studio plans to reintroduce the mode in the future, likely as a modified event format with fresh adjustments. According to the company statement, holding onto past versions without updates risks hindering the overall player experience.
Classic Battle Pass and Champion Releases Scheduled for Patch 26.21
The upcoming Classic Battle Pass for Babak II will feature a single unified free track starting with patch 26.21. Moving forward, the Classic shop will house exclusively Champion Pages, Rune Pages, and Runes.
To support players dedicated to the mode, Riot Games scheduled several champion additions through patch 26.23. The release schedule includes:
- Patch 26.20: Irelia, Karma, Quinn, Aatrox, and Caitlyn
- Patch 26.21: Mordekaiser, Yorick, Hecarim, and Lucian
- Patches 26.22 to 26.23: Volibear, Urgot, and Udyr, based on recent Council poll results
The developer also confirmed that refunds will be issued for Classic-specific content that becomes unusable under the updated system structure.
Queues Adjusted for Regions With Low Player Density
Certain regions experiencing strong migration back to modern modes face extended queue times and wide MMR disparities in Classic. To address this, Riot Games is implementing windowed queues in selected territories.
Server schedules for the windowed queues vary by location:
- Korea, Latin America North, Latin America South, Taiwan, Vietnam, Turkey, Southeast Asia, Russia, and Oceania: Open Monday through Friday from 16:00 to 12:00 server time, and Saturday through Sunday from 10:00 to 01:00 server time.
- JP1 and ME1: Restricted to custom matches only starting early in patch 26.21.
Custom Classic games will remain accessible at all times across all geographic regions.
Frequently Asked Questions About League Classic
Will custom Classic games remain available after January 2027?
Yes, custom Classic matches will stay accessible at all times across all regions even after the main queues end in January 2027.
What compensation do players receive for unusable Classic content?
Riot Games provides specific refunds for Classic-exclusive items that can no longer be used following the inventory updates.
Why are windowed queues being introduced for Classic?
The developer implemented windowed availability in regions with low player counts to prevent excessively long queue times and large MMR gaps caused by a strong migration back to modern modes.
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