10 Most Banned Champions in League of Legends
By Barry on Apr 20th, 2025, 11:55
Champion Select... That pre-game ritual of strats, counter-picks, and the collective sigh when your one-trick gets banned (again).
We've all been there, breathing a sigh of relief because a menace is off the table or cursing the heavens as your main just got locked out. The ban phase is a big part of ranked games in League of Legends.
But who are the usual suspects?
(Note: Ban rates fluctuate constantly with patches, meta shifts, and new champion releases. The champions listed here are based on generally high ban rates observed across various ranks and regions according to U.GG.
Before we name names, what usually lands a champion on this notorious ban list in League of Legends?
Alright, let's meet the usual suspects (order may vary based on current patch and rank:
The Master of Shadows remains a strong ban, especially in lower to mid ranks, as his ability to instantly delete squishy targets with his Death Mark, while being able to escape safely with his shadow, makes him a slippery threat.
Love him or hate him (mostly hate him if he's on the enemy team), Yasuo's hyper-mobility, late-game damage potential, and Wind Wall keep his ban rate consistently high. After all, the fear of the "10-death power spike" Yasuo on your team is rivalled only by the fear of the 10-kill Yasuo on the enemy's!
Yasuo's brother, Yone, brings a similar blend of high damage and mobility but with a different flavour. His ability to go deep with Soul Unbound and then snap back to safety, combined with mixed damage and crowd control, makes him incredibly difficult to pin down and punish, thus earning frequent bans.
Particularly dreaded in the lower ranks, Master Yi's Alpha Strike (Q) makes him untargetable while dealing damage, whereas his E reset can lead to easy team fight cleanups. Without hard crowd control ready (or used correctly), a late-game Yi often feels unbeatable, leading many to simply ban him rather than deal with the champion.
A champion like Darius can often dominate the top lane, as he's a snowball-heavy, top lane bully whose passive, Hemorrhage, coupled with execute resets with his Guillotine, can quickly spiral out of control. One good fight can see Darius stacking his passive and dunking his way through an entire team of squishy champions. Sure, his lack of mobility is a weakness, but his dueling power and reset potential make him a common ban.
The Demon Jester embodies the "frustration factor" we mentioned above. Deceive (invisibility and a blink), Jack in the Box (fear and damage), and Hallucinate (a clone that explodes on death) make him incredibly slippery and annoying. A skilled Shaco knows this and dictates the early game's tempo, creating chaos accordingly, which many players prefer to avoid altogether by banning him.
Blitzcrank's Q (Rocket Grab) can change games, and for many, that's terrifying. For example, landing a single good hook on a key target can instantly win a fight or secure an objective, and while dodgeable, the pressure that Blitzcrank exerts is immense, especially in the bot lane. Many ban him to avoid the stress of playing against that potential pick, data often reflected on sites like OP.GG.
Black Shield: This single ability, which negates crowd control, is a reason for Morgana's high ban rate. It can completely nullify engagement attempts or save a carry from certain death in the bot lane. Add in her long CC duration with Dark Binding and AoE Soul Shackles, and you have a support who offers great utility and control, making her a prime target for bans, particularly against hook or hard engage champions like Blitzcrank in the bot lane.
Pyke combines assassin-like mobility and damage with support utility, perfect for high-tempo roaming and picks, while his ultimate executes low-health enemies and shares gold, potentially snowballing multiple lanes at once. This unique, high-impact kit makes him a frequent ban.
This champion has a unique playstyle that can be overwhelming for many players. Her potential for infinite scaling attack speed via Death in Lavender and incredible mobility with Royal Maelstrom make her terrifying if ahead, and a strong team fighter, thanks to her bruiser build and Void Coral resets. Her unique scaling and slippery playstyle makes Bel'Veth a ticking time bomb many prefer to defuse in the ban phase.
Seeing these champions frequently banned tells a story about the League meta. It highlights what players find oppressive, frustrating, or simply too strong to deal with reliably, especially against squishy champions. What do you think? Did your most hated champion make the list? Who is your go-to ban every single game, and why? Let us know!
