MSI, VCT LANs in danger after volcano erupts in Iceland

Isaac McIntyre

The League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational and the first-ever international Valorant LAN event is in danger, after a volcano 30 kilometers away from host city Reykjavik, Iceland, started erupting on March 19.


  • Riot recently unveiled Reykjavik as the VCT and MSI 2021 host city.
  • Both events are now in danger after the Fagradalsfjall volcano erupted on March 19.
  • The eruption is the first on Fagradalsfjall since the 12th century.

The recently announced international LoL and Valorant ⁠events could be in danger, after the Fagradalsfjall volcano started erupting on March 19.

There were several days of near-constant seismic activity near the volcano, around 30 kilometers from Reykjavik, the Icelandic capital, which sparked “concern.”

Víðir Reynisson, from the island’s civil defense force, warned it was “more likely than not” a volcanic eruption would occur in coming days on March 3.

It is the first Fagradalsfjall eruption since the 12th century.

The last time Iceland had a similar volcanic event — the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in 2010 — all European air travel was temporarily grounded through April.

Several days of tremors near Mount Keilir suggest an eruption "more likely than not."
The Fagradalsfjall volcano has started erupting, 30 kilometers south of Iceland’s capital.

Riot Games has yet to comment on the potential event delay, two months out from the event.

The League of Legends and Valorant developers only unveiled their plans to take international play to Reykjavik at the start of March.

The first event in the double-header, the returning Mid-Season Invitational, was penned in to begin on May 6.

Valorant’s first-ever LAN event, the conclusion of VCT Masters 2, is (for now) set to kick-off after the LoL tournament, on May 24.

Dexerto will keep you updated on the unfolding situation in Iceland.

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About The Author

Isaac was formerly the Australian Managing Editor at Dexerto. Isaac began his writing career as a sports journalist at Fairfax Media, before falling in love with all things esports and gaming. Since then he's covered Oceanic and global League of Legends for Upcomer, Hotspawn, and Snowball Esports.