The Play-In Stage of the 2024 League of Legends World Championship (Worlds 2024) reached its dramatic conclusion at the Riot Games Arena in Berlin, Germany, locking in the final four contenders for the tournament's 16-team Swiss Stage. Over five days of double-elimination best-of-three clashes, eight regional qualifiers from Europe's LEC, North America's LCS, the Asia-Pacific PCS, Vietnam's VCS, Brazil's CBLOL, and Latin America's LLA battled for survival in front of a sold-out Berlin studio crowd and record opening-week global streaming audiences.
European third seed MDK (MAD Lions KOI) and Vietnamese champion GAM Esports claimed the first two Swiss Stage tickets without dropping a series, triumphing in Friday's upper-bracket qualification matches over PSG Talon and Rainbow7 respectively. That left four surviving teams to contest the final two elimination series over the weekend, where PCS champion PSG Talon defeated 100 Thieves and Brazilian champion paiN Gaming overcame Latin America's Movistar R7 in a thrilling three-game duel—marking the first time since 2016 that a CBLOL representative has advanced to the Worlds main event.
Patch 14.18 Meta Shifts and Historic Regional Upsets
Played on League of Legends Patch 14.18, the Berlin Play-In Stage immediately showcased a major shift away from the summer split's double-marksman mid-lane meta. Following targeted balance adjustments to AD carry items and turret fortification, mid-laners returned to burst mages and playmaking assassins such as Orianna, Syndra, Ahri, Yone, and Aurora, resulting in explosive early-game skirmishes around Voidgrubs and Baron Nashor.
While paiN Gaming's qualification sparked celebrations across Brazilian esports, North America's third seed 100 Thieves suffered a shock early exit after falling first to Movistar R7 and then to PSG Talon, leaving FlyQuest and Team Liquid as the LCS's sole representatives in the main draw.
“The intensity of the Berlin Play-In Stage has set viewership milestones for opening week as minor and major region contenders battle for a place in the Worlds 2024 Swiss bracket.”
Full 16-Team Lineup Set for October 3 Swiss Stage
With the Play-In qualifiers decided, the official Round 1 draw for the Swiss Stage sets up blockbuster cross-regional matchups starting October 3 at the Riot Games Arena. The four Play-In winners enter Pool 4, where they will face the tournament's Pool 1 top seeds: LPL champion Bilibili Gaming (BLG), LCK champion Hanwha Life Esports (HLE), LEC champion G2 Esports, and LCS champion FlyQuest.
Meanwhile, Pool 2 and Pool 3 heavyweights—including reigning Mid-Season Invitational champion Gen.G, defending World Champion T1 led by Lee 'Faker' Sang-hyeok, Top Esports, LNG Esports, Weibo Gaming, Dplus KIA, Fnatic, and Team Liquid—will clash in best-of-one opening pairings. Teams must secure three wins before suffering three losses to advance to the Knockout Stage at the Adidas Arena in Paris and the Grand Final at London's O2 Arena on November 2.
Comments (0)
Log in to join the discussion.