The COVID-19 pandemic, which was mainly confined to China in January and early February 2020, once again affected the scheduled multi-city hosting format that was most recently present for the 2019 League of Legends World Championship.

[9] South Korea (LCK) and China (LPL) received an additional spot in the group stage, totaling up to four representatives each for their respective region.

The qualification format for North America (LCS) changed to a one-season-per-year system, with the seeding decided by the cumulative scoreboard from the whole season and the results from their respective championship series.

Due to Vietnam (VCS) being unable to field teams for the event, the third seed from Europe (LEC) received direct entry into the group stage.

[10] Top 4 regions in 2021 Mid-Season Invitational (LPL, LCK, LEC, PCS) are seeded to pool 1 in the main event's group stage for the summer champion.