As we know, after the competition on May 6 (Vietnam time) recently, GAM Esports has officially exited MSI 2023. This journey can be described as incredibly forgettable for the VCS representative. They left the MSI 2023 with only 1 game win despite high expectations. In fact, not only in Vietnam, but also international experts and audiences placed a lot of trust in Levi and his teammates.
In the disappointment of the VCS community, some thoughts have turned to other international tournaments this year in the LoL scene. The first notable one is the upcoming Worlds 2023, which will take place in South Korea. As we know, Riot has a regulation that considers performance to determine the number of slots for each region. Over the years, only LPL and LCK have consistently had 4 slots at Worlds from Riot. Meanwhile, LEC had 4 slots last year, but 2 of them had to compete from the Play-In stage, and MAD Lions could not advance after facing Evil Geniuses.
According to some reliable information, specifically from commentator Hoàng Luân, MSI 2023 will serve as a trial for Riot’s new format. Therefore, the results from this tournament will not affect the number of slots for VCS at Worlds. However, there is a reality that worries VCS fans: for many years, VCS has been showing signs of decline compared to the world, with the loss to R7 being just the “last straw”.
Numerous reasons have been cited by both the Vietnamese LoL community and international audiences, such as Riot revoking accounts from the Korean rank, the pandemic causing VCS to miss international tournaments for two consecutive years, and the lack of a new generation of talented players to follow… All of these explain the clear decline of VCS.
The victory of GAM against TES followed by the undefeated performance of the yellow-black team in Spring 2023 may have caused some fans to forget that: GAM only won exactly 1 game in the only international tournament they participated in last year (excluding SEA Games 31). Moving into MSI 2023, GAM also only won exactly 1 game. This is clearly not an achievement that can impress Riot or any fans.
The teams in VCS themselves have had many changes after the Worlds, but they have not really performed convincingly. SE made their first appearance in a VCS final but was completely dominated with a score of 3-1. Team Secret also finished near the bottom while CERBERUS Esports or Saigon Buffalo couldn’t even challenge GAM this Spring. All of these are evidence of a VCS that has clearly declined, especially as there have been many matches where GAM did not perform exceptionally but still won due to their opponents’ mistakes.
As many viewers and experts have noted, GAM’s defeat only represents the decline of VCS. Of course, Vietnam’s LoL may still have enough slots for international tournaments, at least until MSI 2024. However, VCS cannot continue in its current state if it does not want Riot to reconsider the number of slots for Vietnam’s LoL in the future.