Worlds 2022 group stage: top playoff contenders, dark horses and outsiders in Group C
Yuriy SheremetWe figure out what to expect from Group C at the main championship of the season in the League of Legends.
On October 7, the main event of the main event in the League of Legends esports starts. There are 16 best teams left in the race for the Summoner's Cup, which will determine the strongest.
The intensity is growing, Worlds 2022 is moving to North America, and the teams are getting ready to show their strengths. On the eve of the global event in the discipline and eSports in general, we decided to talk about the participants of the main stage.
We will start a series of reviews dedicated to the participating teams with Group C. This is due to the special format of the tournament and the fact that we do not yet have the distribution of all teams into groups.
DRX
Where they play: Korea, LCK
How did you get to the Worlds 2022 Group Stage: 1st place in Group B on the Play-In
DRX roster at Worlds 2022 Group Stage: Kingen, Pyosik, Zeka, Deft, BeryL
Group C review Let's start with a look at DRX, the team that made it through the Play-In and won their place in Group C. They did it with taste, I dare say.
The start of the season, and its continuation up to Worlds 2022, could not be called successful for DRX. The team "waded" in the middle of the home league, occupying places no higher than TOP-5 on the LCK.
As the season drew to a close, DRX managed to snag a second-place finish at the regional finals to South Korea, giving them a chance to play in the main event of the year. It was difficult to imagine the main event of the year in the League of Legends without such discipline mastodons as Deft and BeryL, and the players themselves understood this very well.
Approaching the Play-In in the status of a contender for a direct exit from the group, DRX showed from the very first match that they were not ready to say goodbye to the American World Championship. In the death basket, RNG became the main opponent of RNG on the way to the group stage. Having defeated the “kings” in the very first match of the tournament, which opened the doors for them to the Group Stage.
Warmed up after the Play-In, remembering how and what to do against the title clubs, DRX look like a worthy contender for a playoff pass. It will not be easy to do this, but you can leave the second place.
Verdict: Qualifying for Worlds 2022 Playoffs from 2nd place in Group C.
Rogue
Where they play: Europe, LEC
How did you get to Worlds 2022 Group Stage: 1st place at LEC Summer 2022
Rogue roster at Worlds 2022 Group Stage: Odaomne, Malrang, Larssen, Comp, Trymbi
Rogue is the main opening of the season in Europe. By analogy with DRX, they played mediocre during the season, but at the decisive moment they managed to shoot, and how.
The main performance of the year for the “robbers” is the summer LEC. Having taken 3rd place in the group, Rogue in the playoffs with difficulty reached the final of the upper bracket, where they were swept away by G2 Esports. TOP-3 is also a result, however, to get into the group stage directly, it was necessary to take at least TOP-2. Rogue coped with the task at least, and at the same time took revenge on G2, when in a little over an hour they finished with the “thunderstorm of Europe” with a score of 3-0.
The key to Rogue's success is team management and hard work. The club, which entered the competitive arena of the League of Legends in 2019, quickly gained prestige in Europe.
However, praise alone is not enough. The young organization, with relative newcomers to the world scene, has taken part in the championships under the auspices of the Worlds twice, and crashed twice: 13-16th in 2020 and top 9-11 in 2021.
Worlds 2022 is another gestalt for Rogue, closing which the team will become a full-fledged TIR-1 team.
With Rogue in Group C, and given the increasing results from year to year, it seems that the team has a chance to break into the playoffs. The only thing that gets in the way is the presence of formidable Top Esports and heated DRX in the group, and therefore, they will have to wait another year.
- Worlds 2022: Team Analytics Worlds Play-In Group A (2571)
- The current world champions, the most titled player on the planet and contenders from the “West” – what to expect from Group A at Worlds 2022 (1895)
- Worlds 2022: Team Analytics Worlds 2022 Play-In Group B (2463)
- Why are we waiting for the Worlds 2022 semi-finals? (2239)
Verdict: TOP 3 Group C, eliminated from Worlds 2022 at the group stage.
Top Esports
Where they play: China, LPL
How did you get to Worlds 2022 Group Stage: 2nd place at LPL Summer 2022
TOP Esports roster at Worlds 2022 Group Stage: Wayward, Tian, knight, JackeyLove, Mark
The main contender for passage to the playoffs from group C is in front of you. We love and favor - TOP Esports.
Don't be fooled by the team's performance over the season. At first glance, it may seem that there is nothing remarkable in TOP Esports - the team won silver twice in China, thus earning its own words in the group stage.
China is one of the leading regions in the world of the competitive League of Legends, in recent years it has been actively displacing representatives of the “neighboring” South Korea. Nevertheless, a silver medalist, not a champion, and TOP Esports did not play on the international arena this year.
The “recession” of the team has been traced since 2021, but this is a trifle for players of this level. Tian and JackeyLove are ready to earn their second world title and surpass 2020's record of TOP Esports taking the TOP 4 at Worlds 2020.
I don't just remember the "engines" of TOP Esports. The performers got into serious shape, and JackeyLove even scored a double penta-kill in the Chinese league, which clearly speaks of the “awakening” of the League of Legends legend.
The departure of TOP Esports at the group stage is a thing possible, but very unlikely. Definitely not with this JackeyLove.
Verdict: victory in group A, passage to the playoffs.
GAM Esports
Where they play: Vietnam, VCS
How did you get to Worlds 2022 Group Stage: 1st place at VCS
GAM Esports roster at Worlds 2022: Kiaya, Levi, Kati, Style, Bie
Last on the list, and on value. Representatives of Vietnam will try to get into the playoffs, but you won't wish the company on your enemy.
Thanks to the Riot system, representatives from virtually all competitive regions of League of Legends play in the World Championships, which has a positive effect on the development of the discipline around the world. Naturally, with this approach, there are regions lagging behind, and in our case it is Vietnam.
We are not saying that teams from an Asian country are bad, or not like that, it's just a fact. So far, the teams from VCS need to gain experience and here they get it.
Speaking about GAM Esports, it is worth noting their merits of the past years. The best result for the club was the 9th-11th place at Worlds 2017. The team did not climb above the group stage, and will not climb this time either.
Someone will have to fly out, and in the case of the Worlds 2022: Group Stage, there will be 2 such teams in the C quartet, and GAM is one of them.
Verdict: Eliminated from Worlds 2022 in 4th place in Group C.
Group C representatives will begin their journey to the Summoner's Cup on October 7 at 23:00 CET. The quartet will be opened by DRX against Rogue.
Yuriy Sheremet – Expert in mobile gaming and esports among shooters and MOBA games.
At EGamersWorld, Yuriy, as in 2020 when he joined the portal, works with content, albeit with adjustments to his area of responsibility.