After a relatively dominant performance vs. Excel Esports, the LEC finally has its first representative at the 2023 League of Legends World Championship: MAD Lions.
The popular team earned its place at the prestigious event by winning its first series of the 2023 LEC Season Finals, guaranteeing that they cannot finish outside of the top three. They also won’t have to battle for a spot in the Worlds Qualifying Series, which features the fourth seeds of both the LCS and LEC as they fight for a place in the Play-in Stage at Worlds.
This year has been a rollercoaster for MAD Lions fans, even though the team kept its roster the same throughout the course of the league’s new three-split format. From finishing just short of a title during the 2023 Winter Split to pulling off a miraculous Cinderella run to a championship in the spring, this team has seen some incredible peaks throughout 2023.
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For the 2023 Summer Split, however, the Lions looked disjointed and weak throughout both the regular season and the playoffs. They barely broke into the group stage with a disappointing 4-5 record, and were subsequently eliminated from title contention when they were swept by Fnatic.
It was one of the worst showings in the organization’s history, but the three-week break between the Summer Playoffs and the Season Finals seems to have worked wonders to reset their mentality and bring them back to form.
For example, in today’s series against Excel, the team’s superstar AD carry Matyáš “Carzzy” Orság put on a show with 19 kills and 14 assists over three games. He was a prime example of a perfect late-game carry on picks like Sivir, Varus, and Ezreal, finding perfect angles to attack while maximizing his damage in every skirmish.
With Worlds locked in, however, MAD will have to turn their attention back to the LEC, where they will be taking on either G2 Esports or Team BDS in the next round of the tournament.
