At the League of Legends S15 World Championship, the Swiss stage has just three days remaining. On the last match day, the European LEC started their internal showdown between FNC and MKOI. The two sides battled through three games, with FNC losing and becoming the first team to exit at the round of 16. Similarly, Karsa's PSG team was eliminated after a 2-1 defeat to Brazil's VKS. After the matches, Liu Qingsong served as a guest to conduct the draw for the fourth round.

The 2-1 group draw is quite favorable for the European and North American regions. G2 will face FLY, guaranteeing at least one team from these regions in the quarterfinals. This is tough luck for T1, who, apart from already facing G2, only had a 25% chance of drawing GEN. Yet, Liu Qingsong surprisingly gave T1 the toughest opponent among the four teams, suggesting some lingering resentment. HLE's draw looks decent as they matched up against the provincial team CFO.

In the 1-2 group draw, the matchup everyone hoped for—BLG versus T1—did not happen. Instead, BLG faces Brazil's VKS, while T1 will meet North America's 100T. Additionally, MKOI is set to play against TSW. After this draw, BLG becomes the only team among the 16 at this year's World Championship that has not faced any Chinese or Korean teams. Their luck is unbeatable, but their performance has been quite disappointing.

A brief prediction for these six best-of-three matches: the G2 vs. FLY matchup in the 2-1 group should be evenly matched. Neither team has beaten Chinese or Korean squads in the earlier BO1s, but G2 has recently unveiled several new strategies, possibly giving them a slight edge over FLY. As for T1 versus GEN, honestly, T1’s chances are slim. Even KT, considered the weakest LCK team, managed to sweep T1, so facing the strongest GEN looks even more daunting.

The HLE vs. CFO match should be intense. HLE has been performing moderately lately, whereas CFO, after knocking out T1 and battling AL to a full three games, seems in good form. If CFO maintains this momentum, I personally think they can defeat HLE. Zeka currently has no advantage over HongQ, and Doggo is playing very well. Viper might not be easy to exploit either, but HLE holds a significant advantage in the top lane.

In the 1-2 group, T1 is expected to win, given that 100T hasn’t won any matches in the Swiss stage except against BLG. Although BO1 format leaves room for upsets, BO3 tends to favor stronger teams, and everyone knows how formidable T1 is at Worlds. As for BLG against VKS, I wouldn’t guarantee a win. Despite high expectations for BLG in the first two matches, they got heavily beaten. Still, I personally believe BLG can win.

If BLG can’t even defeat VKS in a BO3, then disbanding on the spot might be the only option. Finally, MKOI faces TSW, with the European team having a higher chance to win. TSW couldn’t even beat VKS at the start, and MKOI is much stronger than the Brazilian team, so winning will be quite difficult. My personal prediction is that G2, GEN, and CFO will advance from the 2-1 group, while VKS, TSW, and 100T will be eliminated from the 1-2 group.

If T1 loses and BLG wins, then in the final 2-2 group matchup, LPL could witness an internal clash. If, and I emphasize if, BLG really faces TES in the 2-2 draw and ends up beating them, BLG would be heavily criticized for squandering the best seed from LPL, delivering the worst results, and ultimately knocking out their own region’s team. The post-match backlash would be unimaginable.

Conclusion:

T1’s luck has been somewhat unlucky. Had they drawn FLY, the quarterfinal spot would likely be secured. Instead, the organizer gave them the toughest opponent. While GEN might still slip up in a BO1, BO3 matches allow for some margin of error. They should use the upcoming break to quickly adjust their teamfight strategies and study their opponents carefully.

So, what do you think are T1’s chances against GEN?

Feel free to leave your thoughts and join the discussion!