Not even three months have passed since Riot Games launched League of Legends Classic, but the developers are already planning to end support for the MOBA spin-off.
League of Legends Classic launched as an alternative to Riot's 17-year-old game – a version that allows players to "relive the early days of the 5v5 MOBA that defined the genre," as per its official website for the title.
It boasted all the original champions, items, and systems that longtime fans once knew and loved, but it seemingly hasn't pulled as much of an audience as, well, just League of Legends. And, those who did play it have apparently stopped.
Riot explains as much in a new developer update online, first assuring that "League Classic will be available through the end of Season 3 of 2026 and then end its current run" as its "goal is to bring Classic back in the future, likely as an event mode with adjustments and additions."
The devs then admit, "We've seen a lot of players have fun revisiting the olden days with Classic. At this point though, most have gone back to other parts of League."
We’re making some changes to League Classic with Season 3 Act II. Read: https://t.co/u6LhvWq2fy https://t.co/Gel96itTvnOctober 14, 2026
In other words, folks have moved on. So, Riot will pull the plug on League Classic in January 2027, as the third season wraps up.
"We'll then put Classic back in the box for now, with the goal of bringing it back," the studio reiterates, "likely as an event mode with adjustments and additions."
Players who have spent money on the game don't need to worry about how much they've lost, either, thankfully. Refunds are coming.
As Riot writes, "We are issuing refunds on Classic-specific content that will no longer be usable… and shipping the Act II Classic Battle Pass in 26.21 with a free track only. From 26.21 onwards, the Classic store will only contain Champions, Runes, and Rune Pages."
And, for now, the team is still working on Classic as they "know some of you REALLY love" it, so we can expect to see "new (old) champions" join the roster.
It's bittersweet, to say the least. Riot dubs League Classic "a true labor of love" for the devs, promising to "keep exploring different ways to play" – so it's not the end end of the road.
