In a historic Bo5 final, Chinese team BLG faced Korean giants T1, making it the first finals featuring all-Chinese and all-Korean players. BLG aimed to break T1’s dominance over Chinese teams and secure their first title. The match saw rapid gameplay, with both teams quickly snowballing leads. T1 ultimately triumphed in a thrilling Game 5, marking their fifth World Championship title and solidifying their legacy, especially with Faker earning MVP honors for his stellar performance.
27 Minutes
On paper, this final was highly anticipated for various reasons! Firstly, this best-of-five marks the first time in World Championship history that five Chinese players face off against five Korean players (in previous LPL teams that won Worlds, there has always been at least one Korean player).
For BLG, this is also an opportunity to end T1’s dominance over teams from the Chinese league and to secure the first title in the organization’s history (which would also be the first title for all five players).
For T1, a victory would mean a historic feat as it would be the first time that a single roster wins the championship twice (consecutively, no less).
In the week leading up to the finals, T1 won the coin toss, allowing the world champions to choose the blue side, giving them a significant advantage.
However, the opening game did not start well for them. Following a well-executed late invade by BLG, Gumayusi fell, giving first blood to Elk. It quickly became evident that BLG was better prepared for this final. The decision-making was sharp, and T1 was kept on the defensive. A gold gap quickly developed and continued to widen. T1 struggled to find their footing, making numerous mistakes badly punished by a well-coordinated BLG. After several tense minutes of effective vision control around Baron Nashor, T1’s final blunder allowed the Chinese seed 1 to secure the neutral objective and the first game, concluding in less than 27 minutes.
In the second match, BLG once again surprised T1, securing first blood almost immediately. Nevertheless, T1 refused to give in and managed to regain the advantage with a beautiful dive at the 8-minute mark. Similar to the previous encounter, the team that builds an early gold lead snowballed quickly. BLG attempted an all-in play to recover, but T1’s reinforcements arrived just in time. After 27 minutes of play, T1 leveled the series at 1-1.
In Match 3, BLG showcased one of their classic team compositions, featuring Xun’s Kindred and Knight’s Galio. This duo ran rampant, devastating a T1 side that couldn’t withstand the pressure. Once again, the snowball effect was surgical, and the trailing team could only attempt an improbable all-in comeback. T1’s effort fell short, and BLG accelerated to take a 2-1 lead in the series (with yet another victory in 27 minutes).
So far, the matches have been determined within the first few minutes, as both teams snowballed too effectively and swiftly to allow for a comeback.
Faker: The Eternal Legend
Facing elimination, T1 needed to regroup if they wanted to defend their title and further etch this roster’s legacy. However, much like in matches 1 and 3, it was BLG that seized control of the game. With a major focus on Zeus’s Rumble, BLG took the lead. Despite Xun’s proactivity, T1 remained composed and managed to secure the majority of the neutral objectives (including the six grubs). Both teams traded blows, with skirmishes swinging back and forth. The game was relatively balanced, but BLG held the time advantage, as Knight’s Smolder scaling became increasingly threatening. It appeared that T1 was in a tight spot, but it was Faker who brought a glimmer of hope. Rallying behind his Sylas, T1 found a massive mid-game surge, and under the leadership of a Faker rarely seen at this level, T1 returned to even the score.
Game 5, the moment of legends, and on this day, November 2, 2024, the ultimate legend of the game declared it was not yet time to pass the torch. In the early minutes, T1 managed to secure a slight gold advantage, particularly thanks to their bot lane