League of Legends Classic, Riot's return to the Season 3 era of Summoner's Rift, will end its current run on January 6, 2027. Riot announced the decision on October 14 in a /dev post from Meddler and Pabro, and its support page pins the date.
Classic launched on July 29. It will have lasted a little over five months, which is roughly how long Season 3 nostalgia lasted the first time, too.
The reason is the usual one, stated plainly: "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." Riot didn't share player numbers. It did say some regions now have long queue times and wide MMR gaps, which is how a population problem looks from inside the queue.
What changes before it closes
Patch 26.21, scheduled for October 21, starts the wind-down.
- Windowed queues arrive in Korea, LAN, LAS, Taiwan, Vietnam, Turkey, SEA, Oceania and Russia. Matchmaking opens 4 PM to midnight on weekdays and 10 AM to 1 AM on weekends, server time.
- Japan and MENA go custom-matches-only.
- Custom games stay available in every region, all hours, until the end.
- The Classic store shrinks to champions, runes and rune pages. Classic-only cosmetics come off the shelf.
- The Act II Classic Pass is free. There is one track and no premium upgrade.
Riot is also still adding champions. Irelia, Karma, Quinn, Aatrox and Caitlyn arrived in 26.20; Mordekaiser, Yorick, Hecarim and Lucian land in 26.21; more come every patch through 26.23, including Volibear, Urgot and Udyr, the top three in the latest Council vote. It's an odd look for a closing mode, but the people still queuing get their Udyr.
Dates that matter
- October 20, 11 AM PT: Act II Classic Pass starts.
- October 21: Patch 26.21, queue windows and store changes.
- January 4, 11:59 PM PT: Classic Pass progress ends.
- January 5, 11:59 PM PT: Classic Pass deactivates.
- January 6, 2027: last day of League Classic.
If you're planning to grind the pass on the last day, you've missed it by two days. Spend your Classic Pass Coins early.
Refunds
Riot is refunding Classic-only cosmetics that will stop being usable, beginning 30 days after the notice. According to the support page and Dot Esports' breakdown:
- Classic portraits bought from the store get their full RP back, mostly by November 30.
- Portraits earned from the paid Act I pass come back at 200 RP each.
- If you bought the Act I pass with real money and want that money back instead of RP, contact Player Support within 30 days of October 14. That puts the deadline around mid-November.
- Eligible Classic chromas, the Welcome Bundle portrait and Collector's Box contents have their own terms. Check Riot's support article for your specific purchase.
Is League Classic coming back?
Maybe. Riot says it wants to bring Classic back "likely as an event mode with adjustments and additions," and promises a later write-up on what it got right and where "sticking too closely to the past may have held the experience back." It has given no date and made no commitment about whether anything earned now carries over.
Bottom line
So a nostalgia mode is being retired to the archive it came from, with a note saying it might be back. That's honest, and also exactly what everyone said about Season 3. Regular League of Legends is unaffected. For the rest of next year's closures, see our 2027 shutdowns list.
Sources
- League of Legends — /dev: League Classic (Oct. 14, 2026)
- Riot Games Support — League Classic: Classic Pass and Content
- Dot Esports — LoL Classic shutdown date and cosmetic refunds explained
- RiftDaily — League Classic shutting down January 6, 2027
- The Verge — League of Legends Classic is getting put in the vault
Published Oct 16, 2026. Based on Riot's Oct. 14 /dev: League Classic post and League Classic support article, with Dot Esports, RiftDaily and The Verge reporting. Game artwork © Riot Games; official Riot asset used editorially only.