Nelisa is 28 years old and is oral hygienist. But this Saturday, in the middle of Madrid’s hustle, he responds to the name of Ahri, and is a magician capable of manipulating the emotions of his prey before consuming his essence. It is one of the oldest characters of League of Legends (LoL)the phenomenon gamer which has taken the assault this weekend the capital of Epañola, where the European finals of the video game are held. Lol fever shows its success beyond the screens.
“League of Legends It means a lot to me. It helped me channel a lot in a stage of my life where I had a very bad time and I barely had friends. It helped me connect with people. Now I have friends around the world, ”says Madrid’s 28 years, known in the world of cosplay (costume playor costume game with the most popular characters) like Lady Nelitza. Today they don’t stop asking for photos. Like her, hundreds of young lovers of the video game come from all over Europe, many of them disguised, have taken the Plaza de España in the center of Madrid in another episode of digital madness that the European finals of the game have brought.
From the early hours of the morning, the surroundings of the square were filled with young people and adults characterized as their favorite game champions, transforming this space into a true fantastic universe. The EMEA Cosplay Grand Tour finals, the first contest of cosplay At European level dedicated to the universe of League of Legends. A dozen cosplayers coming from Europe presented their amazing costumes – after hours and hours invested in them – in a stage mounted in the central square, and followed, below, many more.
There are Nelitza, which combine their usual profession with him cosplay And they have been doing so, they invest hours and hours of their time and hundreds of euros in the creation of their costumes, and obtain income with it. But also others, less professionals, have decided to try their luck for the first time thanks to the event of cosplay Organized by Riot Games (creator of the game and organizer of the tournament). To all the love for the game: “I dedicate a long time. I have been playing for six years, I have met people from all over the world and have fun,” says Rodrigo Gonzales, 19, whom the Madrid event prompted him to create his first cosplay. “In eight horites, nothing wrong,” he says dressed as the character of the Heimerdinger game. The winner of the contest was a Spanish: Ju Tsukino (Juliana Alves Pereira Vicente), very excited that the jury considered her High Noon lioness the best characterization.
Edgar Medina, general director of Riot Games for Spain, Portugal and Italy was very satisfied this Saturday: “To start, we have to thank the community of LoL In Spain, that for many years they have given everything for the video game. “The call is being a success: hundreds of people attend, both to participate in the contest of cosplay as to enjoy the festive atmosphere and the numerous parallel activities that took place during this Saturday.
Riot Games waited about 8,000 people every day, but the event is overcoming those expectations. Fans gathered in Plaza de España receive a card, such as that of the Camino de Santiago, which are sealing in each of the activities related to the game (competitions, resistance tests …). If they exceed all they take a commemorative gift. “But most importantly,” says Medina, “is that this is proof that there is a hobby healthy, without alcohol, fun, healthy, that generates a cheerful community, and that serves for young people to have a good time. This unites people, and being here, with all the people of all the generations that are coming to curly, functions as the best ambassador to digital entertainment. ”
The LEC (League of Legends Emea Championship) is the professional league of LOL for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, organized by Riot Games, which includes three championships a year: winter, spring and summer, each with its regular league phase and some some playoffs of double elimination among the best eight teams. In 2025 ten teams compete and in the playoffs Summer The games are the best of five games. In Madrid now (Friday to Sunday) the summer finals are celebrated. The teams played by those finals are G2 eSports, Fnatic, Karmine Corp and Movistar Koi.
Medina points out the strength of the Spanish team, Movistar Koi (founded by Ibai Llanos and Gerard Piqué), “who will compete with the best in Europe. It is an absolute party and a celebration,” he says. “This is one of the few events held in Plaza de España in 2025, but we have had a lot of support from the authorities (the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, attended the inauguration of the weekend activities). He is bursting of people, and it is a pleasure to see the faces of happiness they have.”
On Friday the first day was played, with the victory of Fnatic (United Kingdom) against Karmine Corp (France). The English team will play on Saturday against the local Movistar Koi (from Ibai Llanos and Geard Piqué) in the semifinal. And tomorrow Sunday, G2 already awaits in the final the winner of that new duel for his place in World Championship of League of Legendsto be held on November 9 in China.