If you’ve been spamming normals waiting for your shot to climb out of Emerald or test new champion reworks, you’ve probably asked when does the new season start in League of Legends at least once in the last month. Riot’s annual season reset is one of the biggest moments on the LoL calendar, bringing sweeping balance changes, new content drops, and a fresh chance to hit that rank you’ve been grinding for for months. I’ve been playing ranked since Season 3, so I’ve seen my fair share of messy launch days and last-minute patch shifts that throw off pre-season prep plans. This guide breaks down everything you need to know about the season launch timeline, what to expect before and after drop day, and how to set yourself up for success before the first ranked queue pops.
When Does the New Season Start in League of Legends? Official Timeline Breakdown
Riot follows a pretty consistent annual schedule for LoL season launches, even if they don’t drop exact dates until a few weeks out. First, the pre-season patch goes live roughly two weeks after the League of Legends World Championship final, which usually wraps up in mid-November. That gives players roughly 8 weeks to test new items, reworked champions, and map changes before the official season goes live. The full ranked season almost always launches on the first or second Wednesday of January, with queue times opening up at 10AM PT for most regions. You don’t have to wait for the official season launch to play ranked though – provisional queues usually open 24 to 48 hours before the full season kicks off, so you can get your first 10 placement matches out of the way early if you want to. That said, early provisional queues are full of boosted accounts and pro players testing off-meta picks, so don’t panic if your first few matches feel way harder than your usual pre-season lobbies. Riot typically announces exact launch dates via their official social media channels and client news feed 3 to 4 weeks before the season goes live, so make sure to check the client home screen regularly once pre-season rolls around.
Key Changes You’ll See When the New League of Legends Season Launches
Every new LoL season brings a mix of expected changes and last-minute adjustments that even long-time players can miss. The biggest change for most players is the rank reset, but there are a handful of smaller shifts that can impact your first few weeks of play just as much. Some of the most commonly overlooked changes include:
A lot of new players make the mistake of ignoring pre-season entirely because they think the changes won’t matter for the new ranked season, but that’s one of the worst mistakes you can make. Pre-season is the only time you can test new builds and mechanics without risking your ranked MMR, so even 10 to 15 normals during pre-season will give you a huge leg up when the season launches. Riot rarely rolls back major changes between pre-season and full launch, so if you main a champion that got nerfed hard in pre-season, you’ll want to pick up a backup main before ranked queues open.
Common Mistakes to Avoid During the First Week of the New LoL Season
I’ve made every single one of these mistakes during my 10+ seasons playing ranked, so I can tell you first hand that skipping these pitfalls will save you hundreds of LP. First, don’t spam ranked queues as soon as they open. The first 3 to 5 days of the new season are full of pro players, smurfs, and casual players who only log in once a year to do their placement matches, so queue quality is extremely inconsistent. If you want to climb quickly, wait at least 7 days after launch before you start grinding ranked – by that point, most high-rank players have climbed back to their usual divisions, so your matches will match your actual skill level. Another common mistake is skipping the patch notes for the launch patch. Riot usually drops a last-minute balance patch 24 hours before the season launches, adjusting champions and items that were overperforming in pre-season. I once lost 4 placement matches in a row because I didn’t notice my main support champion had their core item nerfed by 30% in the launch patch, so don’t make that same mistake. You also don’t have to force a new meta pick just because streamers are playing it. If you’ve been maining an off-meta champion for months and they didn’t get nerfed, you’ll have way more success sticking to what you know than trying to learn a new champion in ranked lobbies.
How to Prep for the New Season Before It Launches
You don’t have to grind 10 hours a day in pre-season to get ready for the new season, even a few small steps will make your first month of ranked way smoother. First, clean up your rune and item pages. Delete any old pages for champions you don’t play anymore, and pre-build pages for any new champions or builds you want to try in the new season. You can also save 3 to 4 generic build pages for different roles so you don’t have to build items from scratch if you get autofilled. Next, play at least 5 matches per role you might get autofilled into. Even if you’re a one-trick mid laner, having a basic understanding of how the new jungle items work will keep you from inting your placement matches if you get stuck jungling. It’s also a good idea to set realistic ranked goals before the season starts. If you ended last season in Gold 3, aiming for Platinum is a realistic goal, but aiming for Challenger in one season is only feasible if you can play 40+ hours a week. Setting small, monthly rank goals instead of one big end-of-season goal will keep you from burning out halfway through the year. If you’re serious about climbing, you can also watch VODs of pro players playing your main champion in pre-season to pick up new build paths and macro tricks you might have missed. You don’t have to copy everything they do, but small adjustments like a different ward placement or ability max order can make a huge difference in your win rate.
At the end of the day, the exact answer to when does the new season start in League of Legends shifts a little bit every year, but Riot’s consistent timeline makes it easy to plan ahead. Whether you’re a casual player just excited for the new champion drop or a ranked grinder aiming to hit your highest rank ever, taking a little time to prep during pre-season will make the season launch way less stressful. Don’t get caught up in the hype of day one ranked queues if you don’t want to, and remember that the season runs for almost 10 months, so you have plenty of time to climb even if you don’t hit your goal in the first month. The best part of every new season is the fresh start, so have fun testing new builds and don’t beat yourself up over a few bad matches when the season finally goes live.