As the LPL Summer Split round-robin is nearing its end, teams are already shaping up for playoffs. However, there is more on the line, as the summer is also a key factor in who goes to Worlds. A previous article already covered how the four seeds will work, so today’s article will only focus on the teams.
The teams can be split into two parts. The first group are teams that are currently looking like title contenders since the winner of summer auto qualifies for Worlds. Today’s article will cover this first group. The second group are teams that might need to rely on championship points to make it. These teams will be the focus of next week’s article.
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
Starting out with the most obvious team, TOP Esports is the number one candidate in the eyes of many. Despite recently dropping a match, they still are in first place in the round-robin, and it looks like they’ll stay there. After falling just short in spring, TOP will be looking for their summer revenge. If they make it to the finals, they are guaranteed a spot at Worlds. Even if they fall short again, they would qualify due to championship points.
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
The current reigning champions do have some catching up to do. While there is little doubt left in fans’ mind’s that JDG is still one of the top teams in China, it seems like TOP is a few steps ahead. None the less, JD are still favorites and are a candidate to winning it all. And just like TOP before them, if they reach the grand finals, they are also guaranteed a spot, regardless of the result. Fans can’t help but wonder, could summer’s grand finals be a rematch of spring?
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
The Cinderella story is real, and Victory Five have a shot at making it to Worlds. After going 0:16 in spring, V5 have completely turned around for Summer. While a few were doubting if the team could tango with the top teams, they brought down TOP Esports and were the only team so far to have done so. While that doesn’t guarantee them a spot at Worlds, it does mean that they have potential. It is also important that the team does well since they have zero championship points. If they don’t auto qualify, they will need to pick up as many points as possible.
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
The last team of the second group, IG will need to prove that they can still compete with the best. While many fans say that Invictus Gaming are still a shaky and unstable team, they are in third place. While they feel like they could be a step below the other three teams, IG will always be a threatening team to face. In their next week of games, they will face off against both Victory Five and TOP Esports. Both of these matches should give fans a good idea of where this team truly lies.
And that concludes this week’s article of teams that could qualify to Worlds via winning the Summer Split. Please take note that if IG makes it to the Grand Finals, while they won’t auto qualify with second place unless they face JDG. Should JDG finish in third and IG in second, JDG will still have more points than them.
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