Worlds 2022 starts later today!
After months of waiting, the League of Legends World Championship is finally happening later today at 3.00 PM CT. Mexico City is hosting the first and second rounds of the Play-In Stage with only four teams moving on to the main event. The two teams that top their respective groups will head straight to the group stage whilst the second, third, and fourth-placed teams will battle it out in the second round.
The Play-In Stage usually showcases mostly the minor regions who would face off against one another. However, this year features plenty of notable names, including the likes of three-time MSI winners Royal Never Give Up alongside other notable names like Evil Geniuses, Fnatic, MAD Lions, and DRX. Aside from that, the Play-In Stage will also have dark horses like DetonatioN FocusMe, Beyond Gaming, and Saigon Buffalo, all of whom are also capable of heading to the main event.
Here is what the groups look like:
Group A
From the looks of things, group A looks to be more evenly matched between the six teams with two clear Western favourites alongside four underdogs. Both EG and Fnatic have a fairly easy route on paper to the main event if it weren't for off-field issues that have impacted both teams in recent weeks.
The presence of EG's young but talented AD carry, Kyle "Danny" Sakamaki will be sorely missed as he won't be joining up with the squad at Worlds. In his place will be Muhammed Hasan "Kaori" Şentürk from the EG Academy team, another rising talent to keep an eye out for in the future. EG will also be making its debut in the League of Legends World Championship for the first time ever in the organisation's history. Thankfully, they will have the likes of Jung "Impact" Eon-Yeong in their corner, the only member on the team to make it to Worlds on six different occasions whilst winning one of them in the process.
As for Fnatic, things weren't looking so great for them as well with both Elias "Upset" Lipp and Zdravets "Hylissang" Galabov testing positive for COVID-19. This eventually delayed their trip to Mexico City and meant that they will start the first day of the Play-In Stage with two stand-ins. However, Riot Games has since stepped in and allowed Fnatic to bring in a substitute in the form of Ruben "Rhuckz" Barbara from Fnatic TQ, one of their ERL teams in Europe.
And since then, Fnatic has confirmed via their Twitter page that both Upset and Hylissang have since tested negative and will be allowed to play. There is one downside to this though. As Upset tested negative at an earlier time, this means that he will be allowed to compete on day one of the Play-In Stage. As for Hylissang, who only started testing negative recently, will only be allowed to fly out the following day, meaning that he will only be part of the team on day two if at all.
With the two big Western teams experiencing issues leading up to Worlds, this is the best opportunity for the four minor region teams to step up. DFM is still the number one team in the LJL but their recent performances left something to be desired during MSI 2022. They ended the group stage with a 1-5 score, spelling an early exit for the Japanese squad. Hopefully, they'll be able to repeat last year's performances by making it to the group stage once again.
BYG are another dark horse that could cause some chaos during the Play-In Stage with both EG and Fnatic slightly weakened. They've managed to not only take the second and final slot to Worlds from under PSG Talon's noses but also perform exceptionally well in a best-of-five setting. While the Play-In Stage will be a best-of-one, which isn't BYG's forte, they will be hoping to at least place in the top four to further increase their chances of qualifying.
For the LCO's Chiefs Esports Club as well as LOUD from the CBLOL, it will be hard to see either of these teams making it to the second round of the Play-In Stage. While stranger things have happened over the years (DFM last year and Unicorns of Love the year before), it's unlikely that either Chiefs or LOUD will be able to make that great of an impact unless either one of Fnatic or EG messes up badly.
With all that said, our predictions for how group A will pan out are as follow:
1st place: Fnatic (Group Stage)
2nd place: Evil Geniuses (Play-In Stage Round 2 - Finals)
3rd & 4th place: Beyond Gaming and Detonation FocusMe (Play-In Stage Round 2 - Semifinals)
Group B
While group A does look evenly balanced and should play out fairly easy, the same can't be said for group B. It's very rare to get a "group of death" in the Play-In Stage and yet, here we are. Featuring the likes of three-time MSI winners RNG alongside MAD Lions from the LEC, DRX from the LCK, and even Saigon Buffalo from the VCS. Throw in some wildcards like the Instanbul Wildcats from the TCL and Isurus from Latin America and you really got something going.
On paper, RNG should be topping group B with ease. Having already won this year's MSI against a formidable T1, RNG has not looked themselves over the Summer Split. Their playoff and subsequent regional finals run in the summer were far below the expectations many had for them, considering the wealth of talent and experience on the team.
With plenty of top teams in group B, RNG will have their work cut out for them if they're looking to make it to the group stage. While many wouldn't put it past them to finish at the top of group B, it wouldn't be all too surprising if they had to go through the second round of the Play-In Stage instead.
DRX comes into Worlds 2022 as the LCK's fourth seed but is looking to be one of the top competitors in the Play-In Stage. With plenty of talent and skill at their disposal, DRX is looking very likely to be a top-two team in group B. It wouldn't be too all too surprising to see them finish first as well, given their recent summer performances.
MAD Lions should count the lucky stars that they managed to qualify to Worlds based on the LCL's departure and the LEC gaining one additional slot. While the team does perform well during the group stage phase of both Spring and Summer Splits, their playoff runs are something left to be desired. They failed to win either of their best-of-fives in the LEC Summer playoffs and were eliminated shortly after by Fnatic. While they're very likely a top-four team to make it through to the second round, they should be looking to improve on their team compositions outside of a best-of-one.
The VCS will be making its grand return to the League of Legends World Championship after a two-year hiatus thanks to COVID-19. Saigon Buffalo, one of the region's top teams, will be making their second international LAN experience after finishing in the top six at MSI earlier this year. While they did have to go through some visa issues, SBG will be attending Worlds 2022 with the full line-up.
Unfortunately, the likes of Istanbul Wildcats will be one of two casualties in Group B. While the TCL number one seed did qualify for Worlds 2022, it still has some ways to go before it can be compared to the best the world has to offer. As for Isurus, they could have a slightly easier time causing some trouble as they will be the hometown favourites being the LLA's number one seed.
1st place: RNG (Group Stage)
2nd place: Saigon Buffalo (Play-In Stage Round 2 - Finals)
3rd & 4th place: DRX and MAD Lions (Play-In Stage Round 2 - Semifinals)
The League of Legends World Championship is happening later today, September 29 at 3.00 pm CT. It will be going on until October 4, which is when we will know the top four teams that will be heading to the group stage of Worlds 2022.
