One of the top-performing AD Carries in the League of Legends women’s and non-binary scene, Mia "Miella" Steger has experienced a stellar rise in 2024. From struggling to find recognition and offers to securing a first-place finish in the Equal Esports Cup League Phase and winning the NNO Cup alongside popular streamers such as Maksymilian "Drututt" Przychodzień and Tim "Nemesis" Lipovšek, she is now ready to assert her dominance on Sunday at Gamescom 2024. More confident than ever, the 19-year-old talent delves into her off-season, the state of the scene, her experience with NNO, the upcoming EEC Finals, and many other topics in this exclusive piece.

A Quick Presentation

Could you briefly introduce yourself to those who may not be familiar with you?

Heyy! I’m Miella, also known as Mia. I’m a 19-year-old ADC main, currently playing for NNOwO in the EEC and DKB NXT XPERION Raw in the Prime League. I’m also a part-time League content creator—you may have seen me at events like the NNO Cup with Nemesis and Drututt!

You have been involved in the esports scene since 2021, even owning your own esports organization at one point. How do you currently view your future in esports? Do you see it as a potential long-term career path, or is it something you are doing on the side?

Esports is my dream. I quit school about 1-2 years ago to go full-time into esports, and this is what I want to keep doing for years. My goal is to get better every single day and, one day, play with the best. As long as I play competitively, I will have huge goals and will do everything to achieve them. I know going pro is something really, really difficult to do, but that won't hold me back from taking this risk and doing what I love.

Off-Season & NOVO Esports

You were initially set to compete for NOVO Esports at the start of the year with Pivotless, Lilyane, Sana, and Sahrii. Can you explain what happened from your point of view from joining the team to its disbandment?

Oh, NOVO! It was mostly behind the scenes, so it's cool to finally talk about it. Around the start of the year, NOVO's staff made me an offer to build my own roster. The offseason wasn’t going well for me—hardly any offers and no tryouts—so the chance to create a team with players I felt were underrated was too good to pass up. I was initially skeptical since NOVO was new to the scene and had only been active in ERLs (Editorial Context: NOVO was active in PG Proving Grounds, Italy's former 2nd Division). But from what I heard and saw, they were trustworthy. I wanted to team up with Sahrii again because I knew we could be one of the best bot lanes. Sana was reliable, Lilyane was an easy pick, and Pivotless impressed us in tryouts.

Things started strong. We were beating teams in scrims who were at the top level of Women & Non-Binary teams at the time, and the team dynamic was great. But soon, we ran into issues with the organization itself. It took a while to get our contracts, and even then, payment was still a difficult conversation. After about 1-2 months, we got a random message from the staff that our contracts were terminated, and we were suddenly teamless. Riot Games had seemingly canceled plans for Game Changers in Europe, which led NOVO to make this decision as they didn’t have the funds to continue. The good news is we still got paid (though it was a hassle), but being teamless just a month before the split, with no tryouts, was rough. Lilyane quit competitive play because of it. Pivotless went on to create Chester Gaming, which was awesome. As for Sana, Sahrii, and me, we were lucky.

NNO wasn’t sure if they’d continue with our team, especially since we weren’t paid last split. This time, we needed to get paid as some players couldn’t afford to keep going otherwise. But right when NOVO fell apart, NNO offered us a spot with the same roster as last split—plus payment. So, Sana, Sahrii, and I finally had a home again.

If the NOVO Esports roster had stayed together, do you think it could have matched NNOwO's recent results?

I think so, yeah. My prediction is that we wouldn’t have started with a 0-2 if we had 3-4 months of scrim time instead of just 2 weeks. Maybe later in the split, things would have been more difficult, but the coaches we got through NNO (BIG SHOUTOUT TO DON ARTS AND PANDAR, YOU ARE THE BEST <33333333) are absolute gods at what they do for our team. One of the main reasons we’re winning almost all of our games when they go into the late game is that we have a much better macro understanding than most other teams in the scene, and Don Arts and Pandar are a huge part of why we’re so good at it. Besides that, I think we would have easily qualified for the offline stage with NOVO, just based on our score.

NNO was initially rumored to be leaving the scene but eventually decided to retain its 2023 roster in its entirety. How did everything happen from your perspective? Are you happy to be back under the same organization?

It was all a bit chaotic. Last year, our goal was to make it into the top 4 of the EEC. If we had achieved that, we would have basically secured another year, but we didn’t make it. I think we ended up in 7th place, and after dropping out of the EEC, the org and staff went completely quiet. We kind of got ghosted for months, so we were left with a big question mark about what to do next. Three of us (Sana, Sahrii, and I) went looking for teams, while the others were just waiting.

Then everything happened with NOVO, and we were all teamless again. Around that time, the staff from NNO got back in touch with us, despite a lot of miscommunication, and they became our saviors. We only had a few weeks before the EEC sign-ups, and that’s when we got our offer from NNO with contracts, payment, and everything we needed, plus we got insane coaches. The only issue was that we had only 1-2 weeks to practice before our first official match. I am so happy to be part of NNO again. The people and community here are amazing, and I love everything about it, although the management could have been a little bit better, which is to be expected from 5 streamers creating an org xdddd.

The 2024 Equal Esports Cup

Despite starting the EEC at 0-2, your team exceeded all expectations by securing first place in the League Phase. What were your own expectations before this split, especially considering how your year happened?

I have never been more confident before. I think I improved a lot over the last year, but I could never show it to anyone. My expectations for myself were really high. I knew that everything happening in Week 1 was out of our control since we didn’t have time to practice or prepare. So for us, the goal was just to get into the Top 3 somehow. After that, it would be easier. We didn’t expect VIT, G2, and GO to drop so many games, even though we also lost 2 games at the beginning. But after the first 0-2, we knew it would be smooth sailing from there, and we managed to secure first place in the regular season somehow.

Despite your success, NNO recently began fielding Sayna while Superelchi stepped back from the team. Could you tell us more about this decision and how it has impacted the team?

This all happened very quickly. It seemed like Superelchi was enjoying mid lane less as the split progressed. A few weeks before the decision, she told us she didn’t want to play mid lane anymore and wanted to focus fully on support. We supported her decision, and she agreed to stay with us until we found a replacement.

We then asked our substitute, Sayna, if she could step in, as she was a perfect fit for our needs. She agreed, which was a huge help at the time. Since then, we've had our ups and downs. It’s been a change playing with a new mid laner after almost a year with the same roster, but Sayna has adapted well. She supports me in calling and is crucial for voice comms, helping me carry the team. For example, she provides guidance on teamfights and macro. Despite being an ADC main before, she has adjusted her champion pool effectively.

Who do you expect to face between G2H and GOA? What are your expectations for this match?

I think both teams are really strong, and it will be a close call between them. Right now, we’re focusing mainly on ourselves. The outcome will likely depend on how each team handles the pressure of the stage. The team that manages the pressure better should win. Even though I think the current meta suits GOA very well, Kyanna is really shining right now.

Mixed Scene and Personal Growth

How do your experiences in the Female/NB scene compare to those in the mixed scene, especially considering your current position with DKB's academy team in the lower divisions of the Prime League?

The Female/NB scene is definitely a double-edged sword. Organizationally, it’s not comparable to lower division ERLs due to the incredible support from top organizations and their fan bases. However, getting into these top orgs can be challenging. Just look at what happened with MDK or our situation at NOVO; some shady things can happen.

This might be a controversial take, but I believe the scene isn’t as strong as lower division Prime League. While there’s better coaching and higher pay, the smaller player pool makes it hard to form teams with evenly matched skill levels. This discrepancy is less of an issue in a mixed scene with more players. In the Female/NB scene, ADC and support roles often have much higher elos than other roles, which affects scrim quality and practice. This disparity is why Female/NB teams either dominate or get overwhelmed by mixed teams.

Additionally, this scene places too much emphasis on connections and friendships when forming teams. Many teams are created based on who has connections rather than who plays best or fits well together. For example, despite being one of the top ADCs last year, I received no offers except from lower-tier organizations and NNO, so I knew that something was up.

Over time, it becomes clear who is here because of connections and who is genuinely trying to improve. For instance, this roster was 7th last split, and now we’re in first place, despite other top teams struggling. I’m confident that a team with some payment, solid staff, skilled players, and good chemistry will end up in the top 3-5.

Overall, the Female/NB scene is good for getting noticed and receiving support, but finding a team that fits well for a full year is challenging. The mixed scene handles this better. Riot also needs to support this scene more. The EEC team does great work, but they can’t manage everything alone.

In June, you 3-0'd the NNO Cup and played alongside well-known streamers like Drututt and Nemesis. How has this tournament and the increased following impacted your career and personal growth?

Oh, the NNO Cup! The NNO Cup was so freaking awesome omg. It had a huge impact on my life. For one, I finally found the courage to switch to English, something I had been wanting to do for a while. On top of that, I gained a lot of confidence in myself because I was finally able to compete against really top players and prove that I don’t throw games (even though I was taxed by Aribo for like half of my life savings).

The reach and following I gained from the Cup were also incredible. Even though I’ve faced many personal and career struggles in recent months that prevented me from fully leveraging this boost, my main focus right now isn’t to become the biggest streamer in the world. Instead, I’m concentrating on improving in competitive League and seeing where that takes me.

Nemesis, Drututt, Tommy, and Aribo all taught me so much about the game. Tommy, in particular, helped me regain my playstyle, which I had lost about a year ago, helping me get closer to where I want to be as a player. Winning the Cup was a huge deal for me. After four years in competitive play without a real accomplishment, finally getting that win made me incredibly happy. Some people even saw me crying on stream, which was a bit embarrassing, but overall, I’m just so god damn happy to be where I am now.

Would competing in an ERL1/ERL2 team be an end goal for you, or are you aiming for something else?

This is the LEAST I aim to achieve in my competitive career. My goal is to one day play in the LEC and be the best. Even if I might never reach that level, I wouldn’t want to compete without such a high ambition. If I stop playing, I’ll obviously drop that goal, but playing competitively without striving to be the best isn’t satisfying. I want to give my all and see how far I can go. That’s why I always say I want to reach the LEC—it's my biggest dream, and I’m determined to keep pushing and believing in myself as long as I can improve.

The State of the Women's and Non-Binary Scene

How would you evaluate the current state of the WNB scene, considering the concerns about Riot Games' lack of investment and the recent challenges faced?

I am really disappointed with what’s happening in this scene. It has a lot of potential, but mistakes by organizations and the lack of support from Riot Games are driving it into the ground. We were making good progress with last year's initiatives and the potential of Game Changers this year, but this only attracted many organizations that are now leaving due to Riot's lack of support. This is worse than if Riot had never been involved from the start because organizations that join just to leave will damage players' motivation and careers.

I believe the CDE is somewhat of a savior for this scene right now. With teams like GameWard joining, it helps extend the scene's survival. However, the scene is like a ticking time bomb; we need more support from Riot Games. Without it, the scene will slowly decline unless some miracles happen in the future. We have the EEC and CDE and some good sponsors like SK and Telekom, but these alone can’t sustain such a large scene with big organizations. If just one sponsor or major tournament drops out, the scene could collapse back to square one without Riot's support.

Outside of the EEC, there are very few opportunities for players to compete, especially with tournaments like the CDE limiting access for non-French players. How significant is this issue in your opinion?

As I mentioned before, the situation is like a ticking time bomb. Right now, with the EEC and our sponsors, we have some time, but if Riot Games doesn’t step up, big organizations might start leaving the scene. If most of the major sponsors leave, it’ll be hard to keep things going. Having more tournaments, like the CDE, helps a lot—just adding 1-2 more organizations makes a big difference. But until Riot Games provides more support, we’ll need to keep trying to survive, and any help from people, teams, or organizers makes a huge impact.

Another big problem is that we only have one major tournament a year with just 9 games to be played in the regular season. How are we as players supposed to improve if we don’t even have the games to play? We need a big tournament running all year round, like Game Changers, but we just don’t have the funds for more events. This lack of regular play makes the off-season way longer and harder compared to the mixed scene, making it risky to switch between the two. I’m a bit disappointed that it’s mostly limited to French residents, which means that every organization has to favor French players over others.

The EEC has reworked its format this year, but some players have voiced disagreements with specific aspects of it. What are your thoughts on the current format of the league, and how would you improve it?

I think it's nearly impossible to create a good format with the lack of funds we're facing right now. However, this year's league format is a step in the right direction. I'm just a bit disappointed that we were limited to 10 teams. Look at how far NORD and Chester went this year despite having no payment and minimal support from organizations (NORD did their best).

What I’d suggest, as Broeki also mentioned, is giving players more games. At least a double round-robin format would help a lot. If funds are tight, invest more in observers than in casters and let the community co-cast the games that aren’t streamed. Use the scene's reach to your advantage—many big organizations have people willing to cast games where funds are lacking. This way, we’d have much better competition, and players would have a much better experience.

So, a double round-robin format would be great. Maybe adjust the times a bit to avoid issues with the mixed scene’s off-season. Extending the EEC or having two splits (though that might be tough) would also be fantastic. Lastly, I wasn’t happy with how the Gauntlet functioned. I didn’t like having playoffs over just two days with so many best-of-three matches, and the fact that two teams automatically qualified for the finals based on their regular season performance. I’d change this to have bigger playoffs over a separate weekend.

With the scene's audience remaining quite niche, what can be done to improve the visibility and branding of the WNB scene, beyond direct Riot involvement?

Hmm, that’s a much tougher topic. I think the EEC is doing a great job with what they have, but we need more visibility. The EEC should definitely switch to English. It’s frustrating that such high-quality content is only available in German—it really limits its reach.

Additionally, it would be awesome if organizations could integrate their teams more into their overall brand. The best approach, in my opinion, would be to switch the EEC to English so everyone can watch. With so many big organizations in this scene, if just a few used their content creators to promote the scene and allowed them to co-stream the games, we’d get a lot more people actively watching.

We also need these organizations to fully include their players in their content teams. Many organizations don’t post much about their female/NB teams, and when they do, it’s limited. They should collaborate with other teams and integrate their players into their communities rather than keeping them separate.

Other than that, I don’t have many additional ideas. We have great content and even offline events; we just need more people to be there. I think the best way to achieve this is through content creators and their organizations.

With the rise of smaller teams like Chester Gaming, some have criticized the roster building of larger organizations, even accusing them of nepotism. Do you think this is an issue in the WNB scene?

Oh, funny that you ask this. For sure, the scene has so many issues with team formation, focusing more on factors other than player fit or skill level. Chester is a prime example—just five players, who were mostly unknown in this scene except for some smaller projects, came together and beat teams where people are making a living. It’s just criminal.

Imagine if a team had good staff, did full tryouts (which almost never happens), provided some payment, and avoided favoritism. If they focused on player skill and team fit with a clear plan for building the roster, they would instantly skyrocket to the top 3, if nothing changes in this scene.

So, please, organizations, open your eyes and see what’s happening with your teams. I mentioned something similar before regarding NNO, but it’s also strange how we went from 7th to Top 2 so easily (starting as an unpaid roster).

Conclusion & Final Words

If there’s one thing you think needs to be prioritized and changed for next year, what would it be?

RAAAJOOOOOOOOOOOOOT FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIX THIS SCEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Concerned fans have recently voiced their worries about you leaning into "puppygirl" territory and abandoning your catgirl roots. Should fans be worried, or is this just a phase?

AHSDJQWDWKQDKASNDWDLKJNWJ WHAT DO YOU MEAN?????? I'm legit getting framed... All these rumors floating around... ahhh man, I can’t be bothered...