It's only been one week but we've already witnessed multiple upsets and surprise results - so could this be the best Worlds yet?
The first week of Worlds has come to an end – shall we pause in calm tranquillity and reflect on what has happened so far?
Hmm…no! The competition is as fierce as ever and the battle to dominate the group stage is becoming exponentially more intense.
So let’s rush our way through one of the biggest and baddest events so far, and hope not to get caught in the brawl.
The early upsets
To kick off, let’s take a look at the first upset of the tournament: the match between CLG and G2.
CLG came into the tournament as the weaker team of the two.
But they played the meta well, and used a strong combination of Caitlyn and Nami on bot lane to apply pressure, which helped the team advance and take objectives.
G2 made a few key misplays and their positioning was questionable at times, which CLG duly capitalised on, finishing the game at 33 minutes in.
But if that’s impressive, then let’s give a little love to over-performing wildcard team Albus Nox Luna.
Currently boasting two wins to one loss, Albus are tied with paiN Gaming as the second most successful wildcard team in World Championship history.
Not content with merely scraping their way to this record, Albus have been winning with style. Take their victory over G2 Esports for example.
True, G2 were not playing their best, but Albus demonstrated excellent strategic and creative play usually found in only the top teams.
Midlaner Kira used Anivia to devastating effect – something he’s becoming increasingly famous for.
Smurf utilised Poppy very efficiently, and overall Albus had clean rotations and carried themselves close to immaculately throughout the match.
Two more victories will secure Albus safe passage out of the group and into the history books as the most successful Worlds wildcard team of all time.
Region control
Let’s contrast Albus’ surprisingly good record with the EU teams’ shockingly poor one. While Albus enjoy their 2-1 standing, the combined record of the EU teams stands at 1-8. That’s just painful.
Of course, if we’re talking regions, there’s one that was always going to dominate the conversation: Korea.
SK Telecom T1 are two-time winners at Worlds, and have had a long and tense relationship with domestic rivals ROX Tigers.
Together, these two teams are the joint favourites for top spot.
In terms of ability, they’re both pretty evenly matched. ROX Tigers are vulnerable in the mid lane, with Kuro up against Faker.
However, the biggest block to ROX winning may be psychological.
If we do get to enjoy the déjà vu of a ROX/SKT final, the Tigers will have to overcome their history of defeats at the hands of SKT – even if this year they look like the better team.
Let’s also take a second to appreciate Smeb’s insane four-man Kennan ultimate against G2.
His impeccable timing helped turn the tide and secure a victory for ROX, and gave Europe one more thing to feel bad about.
However, the real story here isn’t that Korea is currently in tied first place in accumulative scores. It’s that North America is too.
Last month, we predicted that this could well be the year NA shines at Worlds, with a specific focus on Team SoloMid. So far, the group stages seem to bear this hypothesis out.
All of the Korean teams are on 2-1, but so are all of the Americans.
It’s not just great performances from TSM. C9, and particularly CLG, have also been impressive.
Counter Logic Gaming actually managed to crush ROX in Group A.
The Tigers made a miscalculation by not banning Aurelion Sol, and Huhi caused havoc in the middle lane, with an 11-kill spree.
CLG enjoyed a constant – and considerable – gold advantage, and superior macro play.
This game encapsulated in a nutshell how North America might end Korean hegemony and give the rest of the world a shot at the Summoner’s Cup.
Another major shock
One symptom – perhaps even a symbol – of this chaotic tournament has been INTZ e-Sports’ victory over Chinese superteam Edward Gaming.
Lee Sin, recently returned from meta purgatory, was put to fantastic use by Revolta, and the match really showed how this Worlds is upsetting LoL’s established order.
Just to put it into perspective, EDG stormed through the Chinese Summer Split with a 16-0 score, beating Royal Never Give Up.
Despite this, the Brazilian team managed to take down the number one seed LPL in what was the first meaningful loss for EDG in months.
Known for choking at internationals, INTZ exhibited surprisingly adept control of the map – they played a stellar macro game and chocked out EDG’S vision throughout.
And serious props to their bot lane play – not only did they contain the formidable Deft after an aggressive start, they also secured an early tower lead.
The real pressure came from Revolta and Yang, who pushed the game through to the end.
Yang toyed with Mouse like a ferocious feline, with the latter falling time and time again.
But Yang didn’t just own the top lane; he stopped EDG in their tracks as they counterattacked.
This isn’t the first Brazilian upset at Worlds. In 2014 we saw KaBuM! e-Sports shake up Alliance in a BO1. That said, INTZ have taken it to the next level, so respect to them.
But with respect comes interest from other teams – after the match Gabriel “tockers” Claumann said:
“People say that this win makes it easier for us to get out of groups but I think it made it so much harder. If teams didn’t do their research for us, now they sure will.”
What’s most remarkable about the tournament so far is how thrillingly close it is.
Not a single team managed a clean 3-0 record at the end of the first week, and no team or region looks to have a clear path to the trophy.
As one commenter blithely put it, “this is the Worlds where anyone can win… unless you’re EU.”
SKT could yet be the dominant force in the tournament, with ROX Tigers in close second.
But the NA region has built some great early momentum.
TSM have proved they are worthy contenders time and again, and we’re excited to see if they can secure themselves a place at the finals.
