The first stage of MSI is now behind us, and the Group standings are finalised; it’s time to see which of the six remaining League of Legends pro teams will rise to the occasion in the next phase of the 2021 Mid-Season Invitational — the Rumble. The top four Rumble teams will advance to the Knockout, where they’ll put everything on the line in a bid for two spots for their region at the 2021 World Championship. If you’re interested in League of Legends betting, join us as we recount the ups and downs of Groups and see which teams are moving on to the Rumble!
2021 Mid-Season Invitational — Group Stage Recap
Group A
Group A’s Royal Never Give Up (RNG) started Groups with the same mindset they had in regionals — plough through the competition and make it to the top. And that they did! China’s best are sitting comfortably in first place, finishing the first MSI stage 8-0.
Some may say that RNG’s win streak is, in part, due to the last-minute withdrawal by Vietnam’s Gigabyte Marinas, who were expected to give RNG a run for their money. With only Pentanet.gg and Unicorns of Love in the way, RNG made quick work of the competition with an average win time of 25 minutes and head into the Rumble untouched.
Group B
MSI’s Group B is one of the more exciting groups this season, as it is fairly balanced, and results could swing either way. Europe’s MAD Lions have big shoes to fill, as the last LEC team to enter MSI — G2 Esports — took home the win. Many EU fans were worried that MAD won’t make it far, but the Spanish club wasn’t about to give up so easily. Pitted against PSG Talon, paiN Gaming and Istanbul Wildcats in Groups, MAD Lions firmly held on to the top position with just one defeat, ending the Group stage 5-0. Runners-up PSG Talon put up an impressive fight as well, ending the stage 4-2 with both losses going to Madrid’s fiercest felines.
Group C
North America’s favourites Cloud9 (C9) had a rocky start in this year’s League of Legends MSI, losing the opening matchup to DWG KIA (DK), who remained in the lead throughout the match and secured the win with a free Baron and Khan’s game-changing Gnar ultimate. C9’s second match, against DetonatioN FocusMe (DFM), gave NA fans even more cause for concern, sending the team into a 0-2 deficit.
DFM’s decisive upset over C9 shook some sense into the American team, who bounced back over the following days, ending the Group stage in second place after an eventful rematch with DK. Although C9 have shown a strong early game in every matchup thus far, going into the Rumble and facing DK’s dominant late game and impeccable team fights may prove to be a challenge. On the other hand, DK only saw one defeat and came out of Groups largely unscathed and firmly in first place.
Group Stage Final Standings
Group A — Royal Never Give Up (8-0) and Pentanet.gg (2-6) advance to the Rumble; Unicorns of Love are out.
Group B — MAD Lions (5-1) and PSG Talon (4-2) advance; paiN Gaming and Istanbul Wildcats are eliminated.
Group C — DWG KIA (5-1) and Cloud9 (4-2) advance; DetonatioN FocusMe and Infinity Esports are out.
Group Stage MVPs
Li “Xiaohu” Yuan-Hao — RNG’s Top.
Shi “Ming” Sen-Ming — RNG’s Support.
Kim “Khan” Dong-ha — DK’s Top.
Luka “Perkz” Perković — C9’s Mid.
Tolga “Serin“ Ölmez — Istanbul Wildcats’ Mid.
2021 MSI — The Rumble Format
- The six remaining teams play in a double round-robin format.
- All matches are Bo1, and the top four teams advance to the Knockout stage.
- The bottom two teams are eliminated.
- The first-place team of the Rumble will choose to face either the third or fourth-place team in the Knockout.
The second stage of MSI will kick off on Thursday, 14 May and will run through Tuesday, 18 May.
Where to watch the 2021 Mid-Season Invitational
For the latest League of Legends MSI broadcast schedule, VODs and MSI standings, head to lolesports.com. All MSI Rumble matches will be streamed live, with multilingual casters, analysts and interviewers.
The 2021 MSI is currently in full swing and will conclude with the Knockout stage, which runs from Friday, 21 May, until Sunday, 23 May.
League of Legends MSI Betting 2021
With two spots at the 2021 World Championship on the line, you’re bound to see hair-raising action and jaw-dropping plays in this week’s matchups. If you’re interested in LoL MSI betting, you may want to keep your eyes on these matchups:
At evens to win, China’s Royal Never Give Up go up against Koreans DWG KIA (DAMWON Gaming), who are at 3/4 (1.75) to blotch RNG’s clean win streak in the Rumble’s first match on Friday.
NA’s Cloud9 are at 13/5 (3.60) to win against Royal Never Give Up, who are at 1/4 (1.25) to not give up on this Rumble matchup at 18:00 CEST.
Want to see Spain’s favourite lions roar once more? Tune in at 20:00 CEST to watch MAD Lions, at 5/7 (1.72) to claw their way through Cloud9, at 21/20 (2.05) to dominate the Rift.
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*Odds subject to change. Odds correct at time of publishing.