After nearly three months of fighting it out, get the lowdown on the last two teams to be left standing in both Europe and North America
After 18 matches and 11 weeks of intense competition, we’re finally here – the battle for the Spring LCS Championship.
Both the NA and EU division finalists will duke it out to crown their respective champions, so let’s run the rule over the four hopefuls.
North America
Counter Logic Gaming v Team Solo Mid
As the odds suggest, Team Solo Mid (TSM) are the strong favourites to lift the NA Spring trophy at 1.35, for one reason and one reason alone.
They are the team that stopped Immortals in their tracks.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, Immortals had been tearing up the North American LoL scene, finishing the regular season with 17 wins and only a single loss – to TSM’s opponents here, Counter Logic Gaming (CLG).
It was meant to be a foregone conclusion, but in the end it wasn’t even close as TSM stormed to a 3-0 victory.
Their star performers were Soren ‘Bjersen’ Bjerg – who racked up 20 kills, 20 assists and just two deaths.
But the MVP was jungler Svenskeren, who redeemed his season-long slump with some outstanding play.
If TSM hit the same heights, CLG might really struggle – with a repeat scoreline in the final of 3-0 in their favour priced at 3.70.
CLG (2.95), however, also showed that they have some fire in their belly in the other semi-final against Team Liquid.
People wondered how the defending champions would react to losing key AD carry Doublelift to TSM – an interesting subplot in the final – but in-game leader Zaqueri ‘Aphromoo’ Black dragged them almost single-handedly to victory.
He likes to strike early, so you can get CLG to taste first blood at 2.10.
Keep an eye on Huhi as well who flew under the radar in the semi-final before an incredible mid-laner performance managed to keep Liquid quiet.
Europe
In Europe, meanwhile, we have another team in G2 that is favourite for the final after beating a powerhouse in the semi. Is anyone else starting to get deja vu?
G2 (1.40) have had a phenomenal regular season, racking up 15 victories and finishing top of the Spring Split.
Even so, they were expected to have a tough battle against Fnatic in the semis given they had reached six consecutive LCS Finals before this one.
This year, however, Fnatic has been forced into making a ton of roster changes throughout the season in a desperate attempt to find some kind of team synergy.
G2 were having none of it, and despite a brief Fnatic fightback ended up 3-1 winners, a scoreline they are 2.85 to repeat in the final.
The only problem is that this time around their opponents, Origen (2.75), seem in perfect sync.
They did not have the luxury of a comfortable semi-final against H2K Gaming – with nothing to separate the two until the dying minutes of the decisive fifth game.
That could well work in Origen’s favour in the final, given that they will no doubt be more prepared than their opponents who could still be a touch undercooked after an easier semi and a string of steamrollering wins during the regular season.
Most won’t agree, but we’ve seen stranger things happen in finals before.
Who do you fancy to win each final? Let us know via our dedicated @BetwayeSports Twitter account, as well as checking out all of the latest odds and specials.
