After yet another up-and-down year in the LEC, one of the most beloved franchises in the European League of Legends scene might be going through a massive overhaul this offseason.
MAD Lions’ senior director of team operations Till Werdermann announced today that the entire division has been given the go-ahead to explore their options for next year after their recent exit from the 2023 World Championship. He did, however, maintain that they “may still find that our best options are each other.”
Almost every player on the roster is still signed through this year, with the only exception being star jungler Elyoya, whose contract will expire at the end of November, according to the League global contract database. Meanwhile, Nisqy and Hylissang have their contracts expiring next year, while Chasy and Carzzy are signed on until 2025.
There are, however, droves of fans who believe this iteration of the team has run its course, especially after suffering early exits at both the 2023 Mid-Season Invitational and Worlds 2023. They only managed to win one game between both events this year but won one LEC championship through a miracle run in the spring that saw them go from eighth in the regular season to first in the playoffs.
With so much veteran firepower, many people expected MAD to be a true title contender this past year, but instead, they were far too unpredictable beyond the 2023 Winter Split. After their run through the 2023 Spring Split, the summer heat was too much for this roster to bear.
They finished in seventh place for both the regular season and playoffs in the summer and were eventually ousted by Fnatic during the Season Finals. At Worlds, MAD Lions ended up as one of the weakest-looking major region teams, finishing with only a single win through the Swiss stage—and the victory even came courtesy of fellow LEC reps, Team BDS. They were outclassed by almost every other team they faced, including orgs like Cloud9, NRG Esports, and Weibo Gaming.
Looking ahead, MAD falling flat of expectations could mean a full divisional rebuild is in store for this popular org. Plans are being drawn up for both the team, the players, and the staff, and more news should continue to drop as the rest of the year progresses.
