As of now, two names from the four Major regions heading to MSI 2022 in Busan have been confirmed: T1 and G2 Esports. These two teams have a storied rivalry, with G2 having defeated SKT T1 twice during the 2019 season, leaving Faker and his teammates empty-handed that year. MSI 2022 could be the opportunity for Faker and his younger teammates to “take revenge” on the “National Circus.”
Additionally, the LCK region is preparing for the upcoming 2022 Asian Games to be held in Hangzhou. Currently, KeSPA has announced a list of 10 players for the final selection. According to Korean media reports, these players will have scrims with teams that have already secured spots for MSI 2022, starting with G2, while representatives from the LCS and LPL are yet to be determined.
However, according to Jankos, the jungler for G2, who recently revealed on his stream, both G2 and the broader LEC and LCS are struggling to find practice partners. Jankos stated: “From my experience, I can say that teams from Asia don’t really like to practice with Western teams. Even G2, Rogue, or Fnatic, and even though we qualified for MSI, Asian teams still prefer not to scrim with us, including T1. Maybe in the semifinals, T1 will scrim with Team Liquid, while LEC will practice with LPL. But usually, T1 rarely does that. I’m not sure if that has changed now since G2 didn’t participate in Worlds last year.”
Nonetheless, many fans pointed out the reason in the comments below the post. According to the majority opinion, EU and NA teams do not tend to take scrims as seriously as LCK and LPL teams. In fact, some teams even have a tendency to joke around, which is something that Asian teams dislike when practicing with EU and NA teams.
Nevertheless, this situation may have to change soon. The EU and NA League of Legends scene is a force to be reckoned with, especially since G2 is always seen as a “kryptonite” for T1, and surely, Faker and his teammates are eager to defeat this team to avenge the 2019 season.