All 173 LoL Champions by Release Date

League of Legends has 173 playable champions as of August 27, 2026. Locke, released on June 24, 2026, is the newest champion; the oldest 17 date to the game's February 21, 2009 alpha roster. The table below uses each champion's original playable release date—not the date of a later visual update, class update or full rework.

League champion release-date quick facts

All LoL champions by original release date

The list runs oldest to newest. On a phone, swipe the table horizontally; it remains plain HTML so every row is readable without scripts.

The newest League of Legends champions

• Locke — June 24, 2026: added with Patch 26.13 and is the newest champion at this review date.
• Zaahen — November 19, 2025: released with Patch 25.23.
• Yunara — July 16, 2025: joined during the 2025 season.
• Mel — January 23, 2025: arrived in the opening 2025 patch cycle.
• Ambessa — November 6, 2024: was the final champion release of 2024.

A new champion is not automatically a safe Ranked pick on day one. Use the current Emerald climbing guide for patch-specific solo-queue recommendations or the champion-main selection guide for role and learning-curve advice.

How this timeline counts release dates

The date recorded here is the first day a champion became playable on League's live or pre-launch playable roster. That decision matters for the 2009 group: 17 champions were available in the February alpha, while Riot's official retail launch on October 27, 2009 had 40. Calling all 40 “day-one champions” erases the alpha and beta chronology.

Large champion updates do not reset the release date. If Riot rebuilds a kit, model and story years later, the champion keeps the original date in this table. Likewise, a rename does not create a second roster entry.

Do reworks and name changes count as new releases?

No. Warwick, Sion, Urgot, Skarner and other visually or mechanically rebuilt champions stay at their original dates. Nunu becoming Nunu & Willump is treated as a renamed existing champion, not an additional release. This prevents double-counting and makes the total reproducible.

For a lore-based roster that uses a different counting question, see the Shadow Isles champion guide. Faction affiliation and release chronology should not be mixed.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the newest LoL champion?

Locke is the newest live champion as of August 27, 2026. Riot released Locke on June 24, 2026 in Patch 26.13.

How many champions did League launch with?

Seventeen were playable in the February 2009 alpha. By League's October 27, 2009 retail launch, the roster had grown to 40.

Which champion was released first?

There is no single first champion within the initial playable build: 17 champions share the February 21, 2009 alpha date.

Why can another list show a different total?

Common causes are an outdated data snapshot, counting a newly announced but not yet playable champion, or treating a rename or rework as a separate release. This page counts only live playable champions and preserves original dates.

Sources and update policy

The current roster was checked against Riot's live Data Dragon champion manifest for Patch 16.17/26.17 and Riot patch notes for recent releases. Historical dates were cross-checked against the Meraki Analytics champion dataset and Riot's patch archive. The count, newest champion and table are reviewed whenever Riot ships a champion.