In League of Legends the World Championship is currently taking place. The team G2 Esports (1st place in Europe) faced Weibo Gaming (4th place in China) there recently. Both teams are considered to be about equally strong and demonstrated this over long stretches in their match as well. But then a fatal mistake occurred and it seemed as if the dreams of the Europeans were already buried.
What a match it was! G2 Esports and Weibo Gaming both won their first duel in the Swiss tournament system. The winner of the matchup would be just one game away from entering the knockout phase, while the loser would still have to take another detour through the lower bracket.
The match was therefore crucial, and G2 made a really good impression at the start. In a team fight in the top lane, they managed to take the lead with 2:1 kills and gradually expanded their gold lead.
By minute 21, they were already ahead by over 1,000 gold, had the clearly stronger bot lane, and were heading towards the Baron. But that was the first of two major miscalculations.
Here you can listen to the anthem for the current World Championship:
The Chinese team suddenly leads by almost 10,000 gold
What happened at the Baron? G2 Esports wanted to quietly defeat the creature and secure the important buff. But they overlooked a ward that revealed their plan to the opposing team.
Weibo saw, came, and conquered, as they not only stole the Baron buff but also defeated 4 of the 5 opposing players. A major turning point, as the Chinese team suddenly secured two towers, was ahead in gold, and even had the chance for the dragon soul, the second important buff.
Here G2 Esports made their second major mistake. In a very clumsy team fight, they lost 4 players again and also the buff to the opposing team.
By minute 26, Weibo was dominating with 9,000 gold, 5 towers, and the permanent dragon buff. Even the western shoutcasters expressed the phrase: ‘It’s only a question of how Weibo will deliver the final nail in the coffin now.’
According to official statistics, the chances of victory for G2 had dropped to just 0.6% at one point.
Here you can watch the match in full length:
G2 does not give up and pulls off the miracle
How did the match continue? At minute 28, G2 Esports achieved their first small comeback. They won a team fight and managed to take out two enemies. Subsequently, they secured the Baron buff, but lost three players to one opponent during the action.
A small victory, but Weibo still had a huge lead.
However, during the fight for the Elder Dragon, things got even more bizarre. Weibo, who were not only stronger but also had the better position and the better opening for the fight, were taken apart by G2 in a wombo-combo.
5 defeated players for 2 of their own deaths was a good trade. In addition, they managed to take a tower and the buff from the Elder Dragon. From then on, everything was back in balance.
The European team now appeared more confident and aggressive. With the entire team, they pushed on the second top tower and were so fast that they even managed to destroy the base tower and the inhibitor.
In the last seconds of the Elder Dragon buff, they even captured a Nexus tower and several players from Weibo. But they defended valiantly. It got hectic and chaotic.
In a teleport action, Caps tried to destroy the Nexus while the others were fighting away from the base. But Weibo managed to defeat all players except for BrokenBlade. He had to teleport back, which allowed the Chinese team to secure the now fourth Baron buff of the game.
Some were already calculating a comeback for Weibo.
But in a final team fight, Europe ultimately secured the victory. After 38 minutes, it was clear: G2 Esports climbs into the 2:0 bracket and is just one win away from the Round of 16. They can secure this today – on October 21 at 12:00 PM. However, they will have to face the tournament favorite Gen.G there.
However, it would not be the first time that an underdog wins the tournament:
LoL presents a song for the Worlds 2023: Tells how an underdog defeated the hero Faker
