Every reward in LoL Pickems is cosmetic. There is no cash prize and nothing that affects gameplay - what is on offer is emotes, icons, capsules and skins, some of which are not obtainable any other way.
Rewards are tiered by where you finish against everyone else, not by hitting a fixed score. Here is how the tiers work, what recent events actually handed out, and which ones are realistically worth aiming at.
How the reward tiers work
Placement is by percentile. Your absolute score matters only in that it determines where you land relative to the rest of the field, so a "good" score in a year where everyone predicted well may still leave you outside the top half.
The recurring structure looks like this:
- Participation - for submitting picks before a deadline, regardless of accuracy. Usually an emote or icon.
- Top 50% - an additional cosmetic, plus everything from the tier below.
- Top 25% - another cosmetic, again cumulative.
- A fixed number of top finishers - at some events, an event skin for the highest-scoring few thousand players.
- Perfect picks - the headline reward, and effectively unreachable.
Tiers stack. Reaching the top 25% means receiving the top 50% and participation rewards as well, not instead.
What recent events gave out
MSI 2026
| Tier | Reward |
|---|---|
| Crystal Ball submitted on time | "Doesn't Look Good" Smolder emote |
| Participation | El Tigre Braum "Pinfall" emote |
| Top 50% | Zenith Games Blitzcrank "Settle the Score" icon |
| Top 25% | Janitor Thresh & Zac "Clean Up" emote |
| Perfect picks | Broken Covenant Jhin skin + the champion |
Worlds 2025
| Tier | Reward |
|---|---|
| Participation | Worlds event emote |
| Top 50% | "Group Hug!" emote |
| Top 25% | "The Answer" emote |
| Top 5,000 scores | Worlds 2025 Xin Zhao skin |
| Perfect picks | Seven ultimate and legendary skins, plus the champions |
The trend worth noticing
Compare those two tables and something stands out: the perfect-picks reward shrank considerably between them. Worlds 2025 offered a set of seven skins including the ultimates; MSI 2026 offered a single 1350 RP skin, with ultimate skins removed from the pool entirely.
Whether that carries into Worlds 2026 is not confirmed. But if you have been treating the ultimate-skin bundle as the thing to chase, it is worth knowing that Riot has already reduced it once, and that the practical rewards for most players were never in that tier anyway.
What is realistically achievable
Be clear about the odds at each level:
- Participation - guaranteed. It costs ten minutes and requires only that you submit before the lock. If you do one thing, do this.
- Top 50% - very achievable. Completing every stage rather than just the first one does most of the work here, because a large share of the field fills in the opening bracket and never returns.
- Top 25% - achievable with genuine knowledge. This is where following the tournament actually pays.
- Top few thousand - needs luck. A strong bracket plus favourable variance on the bonus picks.
- Perfect - no. Predicting every result of an entire tournament correctly is not a target, it is a lottery.
The single highest-value habit is simply returning for the later stages. Missing the knockout window forfeits the most valuable picks in the game, and it is the most common reason otherwise well-informed players land outside the upper tiers.
When rewards arrive
Not instantly. Scores are finalised after the tournament ends and rewards are delivered to the League client within a few days - Worlds 2025 rewards landed several days after the final. If nothing appears the moment the trophy is lifted, nothing has gone wrong.
Rewards go to the Riot account that made the picks. If you play across multiple accounts, use the one you want the cosmetics on.
Frequently asked questions
Are Pickems rewards free?
Yes. There is no entry fee and nothing to purchase. Every reward is earned by making picks.
Do I get a reward just for taking part?
Historically yes - an emote or icon for submitting picks before the deadline, regardless of how accurate they turned out to be. Recent events have also given a separate reward for submitting Crystal Ball answers on time.
Do the reward tiers stack?
Yes. Each tier includes everything below it, so finishing in the top 25% delivers the top 50% and participation rewards as well.
Can I still get rewards if I miss a stage?
Yes, but it costs you placement. Participation rewards have required picks in at least one stage; percentile rewards depend on total score, so skipped stages push you down the standings.
How long do rewards take to arrive?
A few days after the tournament concludes, delivered in the League client rather than on the Pick'Em website.
Are the skins obtainable any other way?
The event skins tied to Pick'Em placement are generally exclusive to it, which is where their appeal comes from. The ultimate skins offered for perfect brackets are purchasable normally - it is the free unlock that is rare, not the skin.