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The League of Legends competitive season is heating up. Today we're talking about the Chinese region, where the main stage of LPL Spring 2024 is getting ready for Long Spring.
In the race for the championship at LPL Spring 2024 will meet 10 teams. They will play for $580,000 in prize money, the championship of the prestigious league, and two tickets to the Mid-Season Invitational 2024.
The second match of the first round of play-offs will feature IG - Weibo. The winner of this bo5 match will advance to the next round where they will play against LNG Esports in the next round. We will try to see which team will be stronger in their debut LPL Spring 2024 play-offs match.
Let's go.
Form Weibo Gaming
Let's open the match breakdown with an analysis of WBG's playing form. In this match they will play as favourites with odds to win at around 1.3.
Weibo Gaming can be called a newcomer to the LPL, as the club appeared on the Esports radar and the big stage in 2021, and made their LPL debut in 2022.
As a rookie, the results were very good. Weibo made the top 8 twice in 2022, finishing top 6 at LPL Spring 2022 and top 8 at LPL Summer 2022.
At the last tournament played before LPL Summer 2023, the previous LPL Spring 2023 split, the team again finished in the top 6. It's not surprising, as the club has a great roster.
- Weibo Gaming roster: Zdz, Xiaohao, Xiaohu, Light, Crisp.
Weibo Gaming very confidently entered the play-offs of the championship. In the group stage of LPL Summer 2023 the team played on the score 10-6, which allowed to take the sixth place.
Weibo's first opponent in the play-offs was Ninjas in Pyjamas, who made a great run through the group stage and then surprised in the play-offs, reaching the top 8. But obviously they couldn't win, with Weibo winning 3-1.
Weibo's next opponent in the LPL Summer 2023 play-offs was LNG Esports, who showed top flight performance in the regular season, reaching the top 2 of the league and almost beating JD Gaming in the finals. Nevertheless, it was Weibo LNG that LNG had to deal with in the play-offs, and that match ended with the score 2-3 not in favour of WG.
In the regional finals Weibo started their performance from the lower grid, where their opponent was TES. A willful 3-2 win was a key argument in favour of Weibo's advantage in this match.
Next up, Weibo played against EDG for a slot at Worlds 2023. WBG played quite a game and ended up shutting out EDward with a 3-1 score, earning a place at Worlds 2023.
In the opening match at Worlds 2023, Weibo Gaming faced off against NRG. The match ended exactly as it should have: absolute annihilation of the first team of America and an easy victory for Weio.
Next, Weibo played against G2 Esports, and this match was perhaps the most unexpected of all at Worlds 2023. G2 Esports outplayed their vis-a-vis in a mind-blowing series, thus sending Weibo to a 1-1 score. Spurred on by the loss from G2 Esports Weibo Ledgeili to host the stage in the form of KT Rolster.
Having hit the net 1-2 Weibo Gaming without any problems swatted MAD Lions, and after that went to play with another representative of the LEC - Fnatic. Weibo Gaming won the decisive match in the Swiss stage after falling behind by one card.
In the first round of play-offs WBG met NRG. The only team from the West only put up a fight on the first of the three maps played, but that wasn't even close to enough to give WBG problems.
In the semi-finals, Weibo met fellow vice-champions MSI 2023 Bibili Gaming. The LPL resident derby was one of the most colourful matches and ended on 5 maps with the score 3-2 in favour of WBG.
In the last match of last season WBG met T1 in the grand final of Worlds 2023. That match ended with a total beating of the Chinese club and T1's fourth win at the Worlds. And before the Long Sogpeg, LPL Spring 2024 played at the local event of the Demacia Cup series, Demacia Cup 2023, where they reached the play-offs, but did not move further than the first round.
The group stage of LPL Spring 2024 Weibo played surprisingly poorly, as for a team of this status. WBG finished the LPL Spring 2024 regular season in seventh place, finishing 8-8.
Weibo Gaming's most popular champions in spades
Weibo Gaming is not known for diversity in the top line up. TheShy plays KSante (10 games, 8 wins), Gnar (6 matches, 50% wins). Sion (2 matches, 100% wins) and Renekton (2 matches, 50% wins) make rare appearances.
The ubiquitous Maokai is ignored in the forest (appeared only once and lost). But Vi (6 games, 100% wins), Elise (6 games, 60% wins), Sejuani (4 games, 75% wins) get quite a lot of attention.
The centre line is occupied by Syndra (7 games, 85% wins), Ryze (4 games, 0% wins), Talliyah (3 games, 66% wins).
From shooters like Lucian (5 matches, 80% wins), Varus (4 games, 75% wins), Zeri, Sivir and Caitlyn appeared 3 times each and only Sivir didn't win a single game.
Sapports: Nami (7 matches, 85% wins), Ashe (4 matches, 50% wins), Yummi (3 matches, 33% wins).
Invictus Gaming uniforms
We continue the match analysis with Invictus Gaming form analysis. IG will play as number two in this match, and the odds for their victory are at around 3.
IG were once a threat not only on the local scene, but also outside of it. In 2018, for example, the team became the first Chinese world champions, but since then, they've lost momentum.
IG's last landmark achievement was a top-3 finish at the 2020 LPL Regional Finals. The last result was Top 11 at LPL Spring 2023, where IG was literally 2 series wins short of making it to the play-offs.
- Invictus Gaming lineup: YKSM, Tianzhen, Cryin, Ahn, Wink.
Already in the first weeks it became clear that we should not put much hope on IG. At the end of the season it is absolutely clear that IG is one of the worst teams in the draw and they will surely be re-struggling.
LPL Summer 2023 IG played in their own way. They finished in the top 12 without making it to the play-offs of the tournament. Then there were local championships like Esports Shanghai Masters 2023 where the team finished top-3, and NEST 2023 was a complete failure with a top-16 finish.
Before the Long Convergence LPL Spring 2024 Invictus Gaming played at the local championship called NEST 2023, as well as at Demacia Cup 2023. At the two championships IG did not have high performance: NEST ended for IG without even starting, because the team did not get out of the group stage having played it with the score 0-3, and at Demacia Cup 2023 the group played with the score 3-1, but it was not enough for play-offs.
At the end of LPL Spring 2024, IG, like Weibo, played to a score of 8-8.
Invictus Gaming's most popular champions
IG had Fiora (5 games, 60% wins) on the top line most often. There was also Jax (3 games, 100% wins), Camile (2 matches, 100% wins), Irelia (2 matches, 100% wins).
In the forest OP Maokai (7 matches, 85% wins), Sejuani (4 games, 75% wins), Viego (2 matches, 100% wins).
The centre line was occupied by Azir (5 matches, 80% wins), Sylas (3 games, 66% wins), Kassadin (2 matches, 100% wins), Ryze (2 games, 50% wins).
Shooters set is standard: Varus (4 games, 50% wins), Lucian (4 games, 100% wins).
Sapports are diverse: Nami (3 games, 100% wins), Ashe (3 games, 0 wins), Varus (2 games, 100% wins), Miss Fortune (2 games, 100% wins).
History of head-to-head meetings Invictus Gaming - Weibo Gaming
Previously, the teams have played each other three times. In this case, Weibo Gaming won twice, and IG won in the summer of 2023.
Predicted result of Weibo Gaming vs Invictus Gaming at LPL Spring 2024
In this match, as far as I'm concerned, everything is obvious. There are teams of completely different levels of understanding of League of Legends playing here. The fact that Weibo "failed" the regular season doesn't play a role at all in the match against IG. It should be easy for WBG.
Bottom line: WBG wins.
KT Rolster
Gen.GWatch match
