Summit of Champions: League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational Tournament Draws
The conclusion last night of the LEC Playoffs has confirmed the final participants of the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) 2023. MSI 2023 will include a total of 13 teams, and the participants for Stage 1: Play-Ins and Stage 2: Brackets have been determined and sorted based on last night’s drawings.
Format for MSI 2023
MSI 2023 will include a total of 13 teams, with 8 contending from the Play-Ins stage and 5 awaiting in the Bracket stage. The 8 Play-Ins teams will battle it out in two groups of four, competing in a Bo3, double-elimination styled bracket. The 8 teams, sorted into their respective matchups are:
Group A
Bilibili Gaming (LPL 2nd seed) vs Movistar R7 (LLA 1st seed)
Golden Guardians (LCS 1st seed) vs GAM Esports (VCS 1st seed)
Group B
G2 Esports (LEC 2nd seed) vs LOUD (CBLOL 1st seed)
PSG Talon (PCS 1st seed) vs Detonation FocusMe (LJL 1st seed)
3 of these teams will be able to advance forwards to the Bracket Stage. 2 of them will be through a qualification match through their respective groups and brackets. Furthermore, the final qualifying team will be through a Last Chance Qualifier between the runners-ups of Groups A and B’s finals (LCQ will be a Bo5). They will then join the awaiting 5 teams:
Gen.G (LCK 1st seed)
T1 (LCK 2nd seed)
JD Gaming (LPL 1st seed)
MAD Lions (LEC 1st seed)
Cloud9 (LCS 1st seed)
MSI 2023 Bracket Stage
The matchups for the bracket stage have yet to be determined. However, this stage will be a double-elimination bracket as well, with all matches set to be Bo5s.
Play-Ins format graphic. Image credit: LoL Esports
Bracket format graphic. Image credit: LoL Esports
Predictions for MSI 2023
Three teams are most favored to win MSI 2023 currently, based on split performance thus far. They are Gen.G, JDG, and T1. All of them are currently in the Bracket Stage, meaning they received a bye from the first stage of qualifications. Gen.G had a fairly strong regular season performance; however, they powered up massively for the LCK Spring Playoffs. They won 3 straight series to lift their second consecutive Playoffs trophy, beating Hanwha Life Esports, KT Rolster and favorites T1, all in 3-1 fashion.
Meanwhile, T1 have had all eyes on them since the start of the split. A completely star-studded roster, this was the same roster that ran all the way to the Worlds 2022 finals in spectacular style. This year, they look even more dangerous, with team synergy at an all-time high. Moreover, T1 are the MSI 2022 runners-up and favored to make it all the way once again.
Finally, we have JDG, one of the most dangerous Eastern teams in the world. A juggernaut on the world stage, they took down Bilibili Gaming (twice) and EDward Gaming to win the LPL Spring Playoffs. All three teams have massively weighted squads and multiple carry stars, making any potential clashes an ensured bloodbath.
Further Information
- Milio and Yuumi will be disabled for the MSI 2023 patch (patch 13.8)
Credit: LoL Esports // Riot Games