Thus, despite their utmost efforts, GAM Esports could not achieve a miracle against the powerful team from LEC – Fnatic. However, the showdown between the two teams truly excited League of Legends fans both in VCS and internationally. Especially in game 2, many viewers believed that GAM could equalize the score and push the match to a third game. Unfortunately, GAM’s Nocturne – Orianna combo could not be repeated indefinitely, and FNC grew stronger towards the end of the game, leading to GAM’s strategy failing.
Of course, the MSI 2024 season can be said to be fraught with difficulties for VCS teams. Even though GAM won the Spring 2024 championship and displayed great effort, in reality, this roster of GAM is one of the weakest in the history of this team when entering a new season. Both EasyLove and Emo are makeshift, situational choices. Notably, both players joined GAM when their former team was at the bottom of the standings. In a normal context, there would be almost no chance for EasyLove and Emo to be part of GAM’s main roster.
Additionally, according to SofM during his co-stream of the GAM – FNC match, there was a very noteworthy detail: “Just one player in FNC’s position, just one player in any position, equals the salary budget of GAM. No need for 2 or 3 people combined, just one. Like Humanoid, his salary is almost double that of GAM’s budget. And this budget includes both players and coaches.”
In reality, the fact that LEC or any region among the well-known regions like LCK, LPL, or LCS has significantly higher investment than VCS is not surprising. With a long-standing, successful Esports scene, teams in these regions always receive proper investments to allow players to comfortably develop their careers. In fact, LCS or LEC might even have higher average salaries than their LCK and LPL counterparts, as players there almost have no income from livestreaming.
Clearly, even before the battle began, GAM players were already far behind FNC. Moreover, FNC is also the runner-up of LEC. Therefore, GAM players should not feel regretful for having fought until the very last moment.