Riot Games has officially announced the location and date for the 2022 Mid-Season Invitational: Busan, South Korea. Italian news site EsportsMag reportedly received the official announcement from Riot Italy, who forgot to mention that the information was embargoed; Riot's LEC PR department told Inven Global they weren't aware of an announcement to be made at that time.

MSI 2022 will be hosted in the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center (commonly referred to as BEXCO) from May 10 until May 29. As of current planning, the event will be open to fans, marking the first time a live audience will be present since the 2020 World Championship finals in Shanghai, China.

Riot Games is sticking with the same format for MSI as last year. Qualified teams are split across two groups of four teams and one group of three teams; so far, only the LCL won't be sending a representative as they've paused their competition during Russia's invasion of Ukraine. From May 10 until 15, teams play a double round robin within their group. The group with three teams will presumably play more games among each other, similar to last year when the VCS couldn't attend the Mid-Season Invitational in Reykjavik, Iceland.

The top two teams from the three groups advance to the rumble stage, which commences on May 18 and lasts until May 22. The six teams then play another double round robin, with the top four advancing to the semifinals for a single elimination, best-of-5 bracket that kicks off on May 27. The grand final concludes on May 29.

In the announcement obtained by EsportsMag, Global Head of League of Legends Esports Naz Aletaha says, "South Korea has been a frontrunner in the esports industry for decades. We are thrilled to honor this country's heritage in esports, celebrate the passion of Korean fans, and bring all the talent of MSI pro teams to Korea for the first time."

It is the first time since 2018 that South Korea hosts an international League of Legends event. "Busan was an incredible setting for the 2014 and 2018 Worlds, and we can't wait to go back to see the challenge between the best League of Legends teams in the world," Aletaha said. MSI 2022 marks the first time South Korea is hosting the Mid-Season Invitational.