Esports News: In one of the most compelling League of Legends World Championships ever, Samsung Galaxy shocked the world and secured first place by upsetting three-time champions SK Telecom T1.
Samsung Galaxy had earlier been placed in Group C, where they acquired a 4-2 record, defeating G2 Esports and 1907 Fenerbahce Esports twice each while falling in both matchups with China’s Royal Never Give Up. Given that form, Samsung were viewed as a middle of the pack team heading into the playoffs, with RNG, Longzhu, and SKT being clear favourites.
Longzhu Fall in the Quarterfinals
Many thought Samsung would fall in the quarterfinals, given they were paired with the number one seed from their own region, Longzhu, who had looked dominant for months and were undefeated after the group stage. However, Samsung flipped the script on Longzhu, being the first team to continually defeat LZ’s carry-top style, in which they had top laner Khan play incredibly aggressive champions with assistance from jungler Cuzz and mid-laner Bdd.
Samsung’s duo of top laner CuVee and jungler Ambition displayed brilliance against Longzhu, continually outplaying their counterparts while shutting down Longzhu as a whole. Longzhu were finally forced to adapt to the tank-top meta game, selecting Cho’gath for the top lane in game two. Longzhu faired just as poorly with this composition as they did with their original, as the rest of the team looked lost given Khan’s new role of the beefy front-liner. Samsung in game three even showed off a new pick, selecting Lissandra for Crown in the mid-lane, showing their flexibility in the dominant 3-0 victory.
Samsung Avoid the Top Teams in the Semifinals
Luckily for Samsung, waiting in the semifinals were World Elite, the weakest of the semifinal teams. SKT, meanwhile, played RNG on the other side of the bracket. Samsung looked completely lost in game one, as WE dismantled the Korean side with a 14-1 kill score in just 27 minutes. Samsung showed incredible resolve, however, winning game two even when WE got what is considered their best composition: Galio coupled with Jarvan. Game three looked eerily similar to game one, with Samsung on the winning end this time around. Samsung controlled the game from the early stages, playing around the strength of CuVee’s Shen as well as Ruler’s Varus, which became his signature pick throughout the tournament.
Samsung Galaxy cruised to victory with a 10-1 kill score, putting them one game away from the finals. The fourth game was incredibly back and forth, with Samsung’s bot lane performing well while jungler Ambition struggled on Lee Sin, a champion rarely selected this tournament. Ruler’s Varus was once again key for Samsung, as his ability to both engage and wave-clear within the mid-game allowed Samsung to stabilise and play around their late-game shot-calling. A bold call to start the Baron paid off for Samsung as they acquired the buff, and used it to snowball the game out of control, as they won the last team-fight necessary to secure their place in the finals against SKT.
All Roads Lead to SKT
While SKT had struggled throughout the tournament, with narrow 3-2 victories in both the quarters and semifinals, the fact that they had never lost a best-of-five contest at Worlds meant SKT were still viewed by many as the favourites. Samsung had other ideas, however, quickly showing that their play during the playoffs was no fluke.
Game one was all about the pick and ban for Samsung, as they selected a series of interesting champions, with Kennen up top, who went AD to be a dominant split-pushing threat, Zac in the jungle, a champion that had struggled when selected this tournament, and Malzahar, who continued to rise in priority, featuring in mid-lane. CuVee’s Kennen was impressive as he dominated the 1v1 while also understanding when to assist his team. Samsung nearly perfect-gamed SKT, as they only lost a tower on their way to the 7-0 kill score stomp.
Game two also had a crucial pick and ban, where SKT went for an incredibly risky Yasuo top lane selection. While Huni performed well in lane on the Yasuo, Ambition had an incredible play on Jarvan near the mid-lane that completely swung the game in favour of Samsung as they picked up the Baron immediately after a dominant team fight. With such a risky early-game composition, SKT had little chance to come back as Samsung systematically destroyed SKT’s base for the 2-0 lead.
While SKT dominated early in game three, another poor team fight – this time at the 31-minute mark near Baron – doomed SKT. AD Carry Bang jumped forward on Tristana straight into continuous crowd-control effects, allowing Samsung to take him down with limited response from SKT. While SKT did recover and make the game interesting, a Flash-Ultimate from Ruler’s Varus kept SKT’s Faker in place long enough for the other members of Samsung to arrive and bring down Faker. That pick was the final nail in SKT’s coffin, as Samsung pushed for the win and the incredible 3-0 victory.
It was a stunning end to a great tournament, with Samsung Galaxy taking home almost $1.75 million for the first-place finish at a packed Beijing National Stadium.
