Honor of Kings International Championship 2025 reveals slots distribution

The slots distribution for the Honor of Kings International Championship (KIC) 2025 has been revealed.

Sixteen teams will compete in the KIC 2025, set to happen in November in the Philippines, with a prize pool of $1m (~£740,300) on the line.

The 16 teams will be split as follows:

The Last Call is an additional tournament to grant an extra slot to regions outside SEA. In this, one team each from the Honor of Kings Major West (KMW), Major East (KME), and the Wildcard King Series (WKS) will compete. The winner of this competition will qualify for the KIC 2025.

The Phoenix Reborn Qualifier, on the other hand, gives fan-favourite teams another chance to qualify for the KIC. As part of this, fans can decide who gets a second chance through in-game voting.

The top two teams with the most votes will compete for the last KIC 2025 slot.

Just like last year, the KIC will not feature any Chinese teams. This is not surprising as Level Infinite looks to separate the ecosystems given the dominance of Chinese teams whenever these rosters face any team from another region.

However, there will be another tournament to bring international teams to China. For the first time, the top three teams from the KIC will qualify for the 2025 Challenger Cup.

Happening in December in China with a total of 32 teams, this tournament will give a chance for international teams to hone their skills against the dominant region.

Besides the three international teams, the Challenger Cup will only feature Chinese teams which have qualified through the Pro Leagues (KPL) along with a campus championship, women’s open tournament, and a qualifier for streamers.

Interestingly, the finals of the Challenger Cup will feature a best-of-nine series. Last year, the finals between Wolves and AG Super Play went on to the eighth game, with the latter ultimately securing the title with a score of 5-3.