Some big names are missing out this year.
The Mid-Season Invitational is almost upon us with just a few days left before we kick things off at the Copper Box Arena in London, England. With the 13 qualified teams already preparing to make their way to the UK, there will also be plenty of other teams that will be watching from the live stream instead. While this year's MSI qualification process meant more teams from the major regions will be going through, it also meant that the level of competition would increase as well.
With the LCK, LPL, LEC, and LCS getting two slots to MSI each, one would've thought that some of the fan favourites would quickly make their way to MSI once again. Unfortunately, that was far from the case. This year, some of the biggest names to grace the MSI stage will not be joining us this season. And some of the names on the list to miss out on MSI 2023 include the reigning back-to-back champions, Royal Never Give Up.
Aside from the three-time MSI champions missing out on the tournament for only the third time in their career, the list also includes the 2020 World champion and 2021 MSI first-runner-up, Dplus KIA. The LEC isn't forgotten as well with Fnatic disappointing yet again. And lastly, the two big-name teams to miss out on MSI this year from the LCS are both Team Liquid and 100 Thieves.
Royal Never Give Up
The most obvious name on the list would be Royal Never Give Up with the three-time champions missing out on MSI for only the third time in nine years. RNG is also the reigning back-to-back MSI champions, something only one other team has accomplished (this was T1 back in 2016 and 2017). But this is not the same T1 of old and by the looks of things, the same could very well happen to RNG.
2023 has not been kind to RNG, who already had to deal with several roster changes during the off-season. Having lost their top and midlaner last year, RNG started the LPL Spring Split with two fresh faces who had very big shoes to fill. The team had mixed performances throughout the group stage that saw them finish in ninth with a score of 8-8.
RNG has never been known as a group-stage team, often keeping its true form for the playoff stage. Sadly, that wasn't the case this season. Having finished at the tail end of the top 10, RNG had a long climb ahead of them to the double-elimination portion. And while they made lightwork of Thundetalk Gaming in the first round, their run was ended prematurely by Bilibili Gaming, who eventually went on to qualify for MSI.
It will be hard to not see the reigning champions at MSI once again in hopes of breaking the record they currently share with T1. As it stands, these are the only two teams to ever dominate MSI. But if it makes anyone feel any better, we will most definitely have a new MSI champion this year.
Dplus KIA
While Dplus KIA has only ever been to MSI once in its reign (and when they were known as DWG.KIA), the team's presence will be missed due to the immense popularity many of its players hold. The 2020 world champions have not been at their best despite being one of the LCK's top three teams over the last three years. Some might say that since their 2021 season, where Dplus finished second at both MSI and Worlds, they have since lost their way.
The team stumbled in the 2022 season, barely making it to Worlds before bowing out in the quarterfinals of the knockout stage to Gen.G Esports. And after some heavy investments during the off-season, which saw Dplus pick up the likes of world champion AD carry, Kim "Deft" Hyuk-kyu as one of its two new acquisitions, they were still not able to bring the org back to its former glory.
Dplus finished fourth in the group stage standings with a respectable 12-6 scoreline. However, Dplus lost out to Hanwha Life Esports in the first round of the playoffs, a team they dispatched quite easily on two occasions during the group stage. But even after winning the best-of-three group stage games 2-0 both times, it was not enough for Dplus to take down HLE a third time.
Due to their first-round exit in the playoffs, Dplus had to contend with finishing in fifth for the LCK Spring Split. While they didn't qualify for anything, they still walk away with 20 championship points, which will go a long way for them in the LCK Regional Finals, especially if they don't win the summer split.
Fnatic
If there was a team that many would have wanted to see at MSI, it would have been Fnatic, and mostly because of Martin "Rekkles" Larsson. That shows the amount of star power the org has with Rekkles back in the fold. But even then, it wasn't enough for Fnatic to power through as the team finished in the bottom half of both the LEC Winter and Spring Split.
After two third-place finishes last year alongside a top-10 finish at Worlds, many thought this would be the year Fnatic takes that next step to reclaim the throne in the LEC. The hype was further fueled by the return of Rekkles to the LEC with many hoping the four-time LEC league MVP, three-time LEC Finals MVP, and LEC Playoffs MVP would be able to lead Fnatic to the promised land.
The LEC is the only region to feature three splits this season and Fnatic has already underperformed in the first two. Starting with the Summer Split, Fnatic failed to make it past the group stage, ending with a 2-7 scoreline and became one of only two teams not to make it to the next round. It was so bad that Fnatic and Rekkles had to apologise to all the fans who were hoping to see Fnatic go big just like in the old days.
Fnatic soon changed its roster for the Spring Split, bringing in a new toplaner and a new support player as well as a new head coach. However, things weren't looking great for Fnatic at the beginning with the team failing to string consistent results. But despite that, it was enough for them to finish in sixth, which put them through to the next round. Sadly, this was where it ended for Fnatic after losing to both Astralis and MSI-bound MAD Lions.
Team Liquid
2023 hasn't been kind to Team Liquid, but then again, neither was last year. After an abysmal 2022 season that saw Liquid not qualify for any international LAN, many would've expected that to be a minor speedbump in the team's road to redemption. But alas, this season has not been Liquid's year as they failed to qualify past the group stage of the LCS Spring Split. This marks only the fourth time in Liquid's storied run in the LCS that they have failed to go past the group stage.
And by missing out on a playoff spot, this meant that Liquid was automatically out of contention for MSI. And by missing out this year, this now makes it four years in a row that Liquid have failed to qualify for MSI. But while this isn't the end of the world for Liquid, this does put their contention for Worlds in slight jeopardy, especially if they don't buck up in time for the LCS Summer Split.
To make matters worse, Liquid also had plenty of recruitment during the transfer season, especially by bringing in a world-champion jungler in Hong "Pyosik" Chang-hyeon. This was alongside a four-way roster shuffle that saw Park "Summit" Woo-tae as well as two fresh faces join the team. Sadly, they have not been able to live up to the required levels of the LCS so far, especially given how much it has grown over the last few months.
The org now has a few good months to get back to the drawing board for the LCS Summer Split. They still have a chance of making it to Worlds, especially if they perform well in the summer but that also depends if Liquid will be making any more roster changes from now until then. While it seems unlikely, it wouldn't be at all surprising if Liquid were to make any moves in the near future.
100 Thieves
Regarded as one of the LCS superteams heading into the 2023 season, 100 Thieves looked like they could take on the rest of North America when it announced its star-studded lineup. By signing Søren "Bjergsen" Bjerg and pairing him with the return of Yiliang "Doublelift" Peng, many predicted 100 Thieves to take the LCS by storm this year. And while they have had their moments, it hasn't been all green grass and pastures for 100 Thieves this season.
Having already lost Bjergsen to retirement (and it looks to be staying that way this time!), 100 Thieves are now stuck with a four-man roster and with no way of bringing in a fifth until after MSI is done. But their problems stem far beyond Bjergsen's retirement. With a roster that many would be envious of, MSI seemed like an attainable goal for the org at the start of the 2023 season.
Even their performances during the Spring Split seemed to prove that 100 Thieves could have qualified for their first MSI. The team finished third during the group stage, a decent position for a team that had only been together for a few months beforehand. But it all fell apart in the playoffs when 100 Thieves got swept by FlyQuest before getting eliminated by another MSI debutant, Golden Guardians.
Given the amount of talent and experience within the squad, one would have thought that 100 Thieves could have gone further in the spring split. But alas, the fact that they lost to the teams that placed second and third in the overall standings goes to show how high the level of competition has risen within the LCS over the last few years.
The Mid-Season Invitational starts next week from May 2 - 21 so be sure to catch all the action then!
