On October 9th (Vietnam time), the match in the World Qualifying Series will officially take place with a showdown between Team BDS and Golden Guardians. This is the first time that, until the official start of Worlds 2023 (October 1st – Vietnam time), all participating teams have been determined. At the same time, Worlds 2023 will be held in a new format where all teams from the minor regions and wildcard teams will have to compete in the Play-In stage.
With the presence of BDS/GG, plus teams that usually go straight to the group stage after winning their domestic championships (PSG Talon, GAM Esports), the Play-In stage has inadvertently become more intense. Notably, 8 teams will compete for the last 2 spots in each bracket to advance. According to many assessments from VCS, GAM has a better chance than Team Whales as their toughest opponent is only PSG. Meanwhile, TW has to face a team from one of the 4 major regions of the League of Legends.
However, according to international media, it is not PSG or GAM that is being highly rated, but LOUD. For those who may not know, in the recent Summer CBLOL, LLL performed exceptionally well, especially defeating the strong opponent paiN Gaming with a score of 3-1 in the finals. One comment pointed out: “LLL will face challenges (of course) against opponents like GAM or PSG – the team that defeated them 2-0 at MSI. However, this is also the right time for LLL to create a miracle. With the new format, LLL has every reason to make it to the Round of 16 in their first Worlds appearance.”
But clearly, this is a somewhat optimistic assessment. Based on LLL’s recent results, the CBLOL representative still only leaves an impression. They failed to win against PSG – the representative of the PCS region in the most recent MSI, even when PSG is not as strong as it was 1 or 2 years ago. Not to mention, in their first match, LLL faced a team from the same region as PCS, namely GAM. And perhaps the “dream” of international fans for LLL will be extinguished right at the opening match of both teams.
Of course, the match has not yet started, and anything can happen. And it will be the performance of the players that will truly determine their results at this year’s Worlds.