It was more or less expected before the start of the season, but there are indeed four teams competing for the top spots in the LEC since the beginning of the year: Movistar KOI, G2 Esports, Karmine Corp and Fnatic. However, at least one of them will not qualify for Worlds in two months’ time.

MKOI, G2, KC, FNC: Is the LEC a Four-Team League?

With the LEC Summer Split kicking off in a week, let’s see what the four teams have been up to recently and what are going to be the keys to each team’s success heading into the last spurt before teams fly to China for Worlds.

G2, A Double-edged Katana

For G2, their two international competitions mirrored their year in the LEC… In other words, very inconsistent. The Samurai’s story in the 2025 LEC can be summarized as follows: a weak regular season, followed by a dominant performance in the playoffs, and then a crushing defeat in the final. And at MSI, G2 once again experienced a rollercoaster ride, with some shockingly poor performances, especially during play-ins, where they had a scare against Brazil’s FURIA and the LCP second seed GAM Esports. Surprisingly, that was followed by a decent performance against the best team in the world (Gen.G) and then… getting swept by FlyQuest (3-0).

G2 Esports
Photo Credit: EWC

Where Rasmus “Caps” Winther seemed to have to carry his team on his shoulders, it was Sergen “BrokenBlade” Çelik in particular who performed well below his usual standards. But once again, as reflected in the team’s performance so far, the EWC had a completely different flavour. Especially Labros “Labrov” Papoutsakis and BrokenBlade came into their own in this second competition. With Topfather finally deciding to play champions such as Jayce and Rumble, and Labrov playing with a confidence reminiscent of Keria, G2 beat BLG (2-1) and put up a competitive series against Gen.G (1-2).

If there is one player who seems to be stagnating despite a very decent start to the LEC, it is Rudy “Skewmond” Seeman. There is no doubt that if the Samurai want to finally win a title, it will require their rookie to raise his game.

MKOI, A Phoenix Losing Its Feathers

For the Spring champions, the disappointment was even greater. Firstly, because MKOI arrived with a different status to G2 and seemed capable of achieving great things by riding their momentum. But also because, in the game, they seemed more than capable of defeating their opponents. Especially against BLG, who took them two games that were within their grasp. Javier “Elyoya” Prades in particular looked like the shadow of himself in this competition. His synergy and creativity with Álvaro “Alvaro” Amo — often key in the LEC — completely disappeared at MSI.

MKOI at MSI 2025
Photo Credit: Liu YiCun/Riot Games

MKOI showed slight resilience by defeating CFO at the EWC… But in a BO1, which was much less valuable competitively. I was still very impressed by Alex “Myrwn” Villarejo’s performance during this campaign. The top laner held his own against the world’s elite and didn’t hesitate to take responsibility when his team seemed to be running out of options (Irelia and Akali games, both won). I have some concerns for this team, though, on whether they can maintain the intensity they showed in Spring this Summer… Hopefully, their work ethic will remain unyielding despite the amount of effort they’ve put in recently. It would be a shame to miss the Summer Finals in front of their home crowd in Madrid.

I believe the biggest lesson to be learned for LEC after MSI is that the region has to be on the lookout for any strategies and drafts put in place to counter a particular game plan from the early stages. It’s also important to come up with your ideas so you don’t have to improvise during high-stakes matches. The jungle is where we have the most work to do… We’ll have to see if both teams learn the necessary lessons from the mid-season competitions and scrims.

KC, In an Echo Chamber

Karmine Corp also gained international experience this year, which proved quite fruitful as they reached the final of First Stand despite a poor start. Some believe that not qualifying for the MSI and EWC could be a blessing in disguise, as the Blue Wall will be spared a hectic schedule if they want to arrive at Worlds in the best possible shape. However, KC came very close, with two defeats in five-game series against MKOI in playoffs.

Karmine Corp also seems to be the most capable of competing with the East, thanks in particular to their mechanics and efficiency in teamfights — certainly the most important aspect of the game this season. But to take it to the next level, each player will need to strengthen their early game. They have a lot to learn from the LEC’s defeat at MSI, too. For now, only Kim “Canna” Chang-dong seems capable of consistently securing lane advantages. Yet, KC has kept busy during the offseason, adding Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer as a sub to their roster and even managing to further sink G2 between MSI and EWC with a 6-0 victory in scrims…

Will the FNC mid change pay off?

As for Fnatic, the issue was quite the opposite. Their weaknesses this year were mainly in the mid to late game: sidelaners getting caught, disjointed team fights, and overly ambitious decision-making. The Black and Orange also had overly scripted gameplay, always focused on the bot lane, whether in draft or in-game. And in the rare cases where the bot lane didn’t gain an advantage, the game simply seemed unplayable for them. At FNC, it’s been all about snowballing, whether in victory or defeat.

The team had also been publicly criticised by their head coach Fabian “GrabbZ” Lohmann after the Spring season, who pointed to a lack of motivation and hard work. With the addition of  Yoon “Poby” Sung-won, trained in Korean excellence and rigour from T1 Academy, Fnatic could well experience a second wind this summer.