Worlds 2024 Knockout Stage: Round 1 Draws, Matchups, Schedule and Predictions
The Swiss Stage of Worlds 2024 is officially over, and all of our quarterfinalists have been named.
The LPL managed to get all four of their representing teams through to the knockout stage of Worlds, with LNG Esports, Top Esports, Weibo Gaming and Bilibili Gaming making it past the Swiss Stage.
Meanwhile, only a single LCK team failed to qualify for the Quarterfinals as Dplus KIA were eliminated by Weibo Gaming in a nailbiter of a series. Now, Gen.G, T1 and Hanwha Life Esports remain to look to bring the Worlds trophy back to South Korea.
The final team to earn a spot in the Quarterfinals of the biggest tournament of the year was none other than the North American FlyQuest. As the sole Western team left standing at Worlds 2024, FLY will be hungry to show that professional League of Legends is not just a two region affair.
It's do or die time for all remaining teams at Worlds, as there are no more second chances once the Knockout Stage kicks off.
Worlds 2024 Quarterfinals Matchups, Schedule and Predictions
LNG Esports vs Weibo Gaming [2pm CET | October 17th]
LNG qualified for Quarterfinals after looking like the best team in the Swiss Stage. With a quick 3-0, LNG ended up being the very first team to get into the knockout stage of Worlds 2024.
LNG have played dynamic and precise League of Legends so far in the tournament, with their two biggest stars of Scout and GALA performing at superlative levels in their latest matches.
Weibo, in turn, qualified for the Quarterfinals of Worlds 2024 on the eleventh hour after a dramatic and well fought victory over Dplus KIA. In truth, Weibo Gaming's gameplay has been all over the place during the Swiss Stage. The team boasts a lot of experience on the roster, but have struggled with synergy and consistency all year long.
The last time these two teams met was in the LPL Regional Finals over a month ago, where LNG walked away with a convincing 3-0 victory over Weibo.
With the way LNG have been playing recently, the team is quietly building up momentum to do something special at Worlds, and that starts with a victory over Weibo in the Quarterfinals.
GALA has been rock solid for LNG in the bot lane, and will be a difficult opponent for any team at Worlds to topple. (Credit: Liu Yicun/Riot Games)Hanwha Life Esports vs Bilibili Gaming [2pm CET | October 18th]
This matchup has all the makings of an absolute banger, and neither team will be very happy about the draw.
Hanwha Life came into Worlds carrying over their great run of form from the LCK. The team's only loss in the Swiss Stage came against LCK rivals of Gen.G, who they will no doubt be hungry to face again. If they're serious about a rematch, though, HLE will have to make it to the Grand Finals of Worlds first.
HLE has a stellar roster filled with star power that has been consistently improving throughout the year, seemingly finding their peak at just the right time.
BLG, like HLE, also came into Worlds 2024 as one of the biggest favorites to walk away with the trophy. Now, though, after struggling to make it out of the Swiss Stage, losing to LNG and T1, and swapping junglers mid-tournament, BLG are a bit of a hot mess.
Despite rampaging through the competition in the LPL Summer Playoffs, BLG have been unable to maintain that form at Worlds. Following a rough start to the tournament, the team subbed in XUN in place of Wei just in time to give the squad enough of a surge to make it to the Quarterfinals, but the team's form has been worrying all the same.
Not too long ago, this would have been an incredibly hard match to call. As things stand, however, HLE comes into this series as the clear favorite, having put up far stronger performances in the Swiss Stage.
Hanwha Life will be hungry for a rematch against Gen.G, and will not want to let BLG stand in the way of that. (Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games)Top Esports vs T1 [2pm CET | October 19th]
Top Esports and T1 faced off against one another during their very first match of Worlds 2024. In that game, TES came away with the win after a back-and-forth game that came down to the finest of margins in the end.
Following their only loss of the tournament so far, T1 seem to have kicked into gear with convincing wins against strong sides like BLG and G2 to qualify for the Quarterfinals. T1 have shown a great understanding of the meta and jungler Oner has, as he seemingly always does, hit a new level at Worlds.
Despite their struggles to end the year in the LPL, Top Esports have been great at Worlds so far. Reigning LPL MVP Tian has been on point in the early game, which has proven to go a long way for this team.
TES have also managed to show a new dimension to their game by letting Creme take over games and be the leading force in their mid-to-late game.
This series should be an amazing spectacle to behold. The jungle matchup between Tian and Oner should be particularly pivotal, as both teams often live or die by the way these two players perform.
Ultimately, while the series is likely to go the distance, it's fair to expect T1 and Faker's experience and shotcalling to shine through in the end as the Korean side moves on to the Semifinals.
A four-time World Champion, there is no single player that can match Faker's leadership. (Credit: Adela Sznajder/Riot Games)Gen.G vs FlyQuest [2pm CET | October 20th]
The sole Western hope left at Worlds, FlyQuest will not be looking forward to their Quarterfinals matchup against Gen.G.
Admittedly, FLY has shocked the scene with their fresh strategies and overall commendable level of play throughout the Swiss Stage. And yet, Gen.G may well be the very best in the world right now, bar none.
Like LNG, Gen.G qualified to the Quarterfinals after putting up a quick 3-0 in the Swiss Stage, with wins over extremely difficult teams like Top Esports and Hanwha Life in the process. Gen.G's clinical and methodical approach to the game is simply unmatched at the time.
FlyQuest have shown remarkable flexibility in their drafts, and that will surely be a valuable tool to have against an opponent that should be stronger pound-for-pound.
In the end, though, while FlyQuest may be able to throw off Gen.G in the draft, that should realistically amount to no more than a single win for FlyQuest as Gen.G are expected to dominate their way to the Semifinals.
After beating HLE, Gen.G proved they are the team to beat at Worlds 2024. (Credit: Liu Yicun/Riot Games)Where to Watch
Make sure you don't miss a moment of the Quarterfinals of Worlds 2024! You can catch all the action live on the official Worlds Twitch and Youtube channels.
For the latest League of Legends news, follow Strafe Esports. To follow everything on Worlds 2024, check out our full guide. Also follow the Strafe YouTube channel for exclusive interviews with your favorite players and coaches.
Image source: Riot Games
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