LoL Worlds 2024: TL and GAM live to fight another day

Day 4 of Worlds 2024 Swiss Stage has come to an end, along with the season of the LEC's third seed MAD Lions KOI and the CBLOL's champion paiN Gaming. While MDK fell surprisingly short to GAM (2-1) this Monday, Team Liquid lived up to expectations by defeating PNG (2-0). Only one of the 14 remaining teams will be crowned League of Legends' Season 14 world champion, on November 2.

Even though GAM made a strong impression during Play-Ins by qualifying without dropping a single game, the VCS champion didn’t seem like a favorite heading into its last-chance series against MDK. Initially, expectations were met and even exceeded when the LEC’s third seed completed the fastest game of Worlds 2024 so far, finishing in 20 minutes and 56 seconds. While the draft gap had a noticeable impact, with prioritized picks by the tournament’s top teams, Bartłomiej "Fresskowy" Przewoźnik surprised everyone by pulling out Yone in game 1. After this rout, GAM seemed overall doomed.

However, the Vietnamese team defied expectations and bounced back, led by Đỗ "Levi" Duy Khánh's Wukong in game 2. In a bloody 42-minute game with 40 kills, MDK eventually crumbled due to an exposed flank attempt from the Polish mid laner. GAM’s captain, especially, stepped up in the jungle to save his team from elimination, finishing with an impressive KDA of 9/2/13.

In the decisive game of the series, the Spanish team's confidence seemed to fall apart. After the first 7 minutes, MDK was already 3k gold behind. Things only got worse for the EMEA representative as GAM claimed every neutral objective — all Void Grubs and Drakes — and dominated the top lane with a 2.5k gold lead in the head-to-head. GAM dished out the same kind of punishment they suffered in the first game, crushing MAD Lions KOI’s hopes in just 26 minutes.

NA and Brazil will merge into a two-conference league next year, and this series offered a preview of the upcoming rivalry. As expected, Team Liquid proved to be stronger than the CBLOL champion, particularly in terms of macro play. The two carries from the LCS put on a show in game one, especially Sean "Yeon" Sung, who finished with a perfect KDA of 9/0/3. However, TL still seems a bit lost in the midgame and lacks the clutch decisions needed to close out games. What looked like an easy win at 20 minutes nearly slipped away, as PNG took Ocean Soul and managed to hold on for 16 more minutes.

The second game featured more back-and-forth action, with paiN Gaming even taking the lead at one point. This last match of the day felt like an ARAM on the original Summoner's Rift, with more than one kill per minute. Eain "APA" Stearns eventually seized control by finding a crucial flank on the CBLOL champion's carries, allowing LCS' second seed to push down mid and secure qualification for the next round. Jo "CoreJJ" Yong-in admitted on the official broadcast: "Our hands are not working well so far." They have until Saturday to overcome their difficulties when they face the day's other winners — GAM Esports — in another elimination BO3.

The draw for the fifth round has been completed and matches will kick off on Thursday at 2:00 PM CET with DK - TES followed by HLE - FLY.