LCS is taking a week off, so that teams can focus all their efforts on the Intel Extreme Masters Katowice League of Legends tournament, which takes place March 4-6. League has very few international tournaments, making IEM extremely important. Teams might be doing well in their own regions, but if they bomb on the world stage, their strategies might need some tinkering. The last IEM took place in Cologne in December of last year. Ever, a team that was relegated the previous year, shocked everyone by winning the whole thing. If Katowice is as exciting as Cologne, we are in for a great show.
Eight teams from five different regions will fight for a prize pool of at least $100,000. Origen and CLG secured their spot by taking first and second place at IEM San Jose, while Ever and the Qiao Gu Reapers claimed the top spots in Cologne. Royal Never Give Up, TSM, SK Telecom and Fnatic all received invites as representatives of their respective regions. The eight teams will be broken up into two groups, with four of these teams making it to the playoffs.
Speculation is mounting as to who will win the whole thing. Lolesports and MonteCristo expect SKT to win, despite a lackluster split so far. Since losing Bengi in the top lane, SKT has struggled to retain the dominance they had at this year’s worlds. Blank, their new top laner, does not have the same level of map aggression and micro play that Bengi brought to the team. This is their chance to prove that they are still the best in the world.
My bet is on CLG, if they play to their strengths. CLG has a tendency to do extremely well in high pressure situations, beating the unbeatable Immortals and securing a victory against Cloud 9 last week. Other teams like Fnatic and QG choke, which should allow CLG to come out ahead.
You can check out the games on IEM’s Twitch starting tomorrow at 12:30 CEST time or 6:30 a.m. EST.
