Wild Rift Icons: BRU, Flash Wolves, RRQ qualify for Group Stage
The Play-ins of the first-ever League of Legends: Wild Rift Icons Global Championship has concluded in Singapore, with all three Southeast Asian representatives qualifying for the next stage of the competition.
Thailand's Buriram United Esports (BRU), Taiwan's Flash Wolves, and the Philippines' Rex Regum Qeon (RRQ) are all through to the Icons Group Stage after facing three other teams in their Play-in groups in best-of-three, double-elimination matches.
BRU dominated Group D of the Play-ins, winning all their games against Liberty, Sentinels and Freecs to finish with a perfect 4-0 record.
The Thai squad began their Icons campaign by stomping Korean team Kwangdong Freecs in their opening match, 2-0, before sweeping Brazilian team Liberty in the Winner’s Match to become Group D’s first seed. Meanwhile, Liberty took Group D's second seed with a 4-3 standing.
Next to qualify was Flash Wolves from the Masters region, who faced Nova Esports, Game-Lord, and Furious Gaming in Group A. The Taiwanese team started strong, sweeping Belgian team Game-Lord 2-0 in the opening match.
However, the Taiwanese team fell to Chinese team Nova Esports, 0-2 in the winner’s match. Flash Wolves then denied Game-Lord of a revenge win, sweeping the European team 2-0 in the Decider Match. This allowed Flash Wolves to take the second seed of Group A, after Nova Esports.
Filipino team RRQ were next to qualify after they faced JD Gaming, Unsold Stuff Gaming, and STMN Esports in Group B. RRQ started off with a bang, sweeping Japan's Unsold Stuff Gaming 2-0 in their opening match.
The Filipino team then struggled against China's JD Gaming in a nail-biter winners’ match that stretched into a three-game series.
RRQ threw a curveball Rakan mid for star mid laner Sean "Helios" Palisoc, which allowed them to take a game off JDG.
However, JDG still took the series 2-1, taking the first seed of Group B. RRQ then swept Unsold Stuff Gaming, 2-0, once more in the decider match to secure their spot in the Group Stage.
Last to qualify was Taiwan's Flash Wolves, who faced Nova Esports, Game-Lord, and Furious Gaming in Group A. The Taiwanese team started strong, sweeping Belgian team Game-Lord, 2-0, in the opening match.
However, Flash Wolves fell to Chinese team Nova Esports, 0-2, in the winner’s match. The Taiwanese squad then denied Game-Lord a revenge win, sweeping them, 2-0, once again in the decider match.
As a result, Flash Wolves took the second seed of Group A, after Nova Esports, and qualified for the Group Stage.
All three Southeast Asian teams, along with Nova Esports, JD Gaming, J Team, T1, and Liberty, will face the top teams from all eight regions in the Icons Group Stage.
The draw results from the Group Stage are as follows:
Meanwhile, the journey ends for the eight teams that failed to make it out of the Play-ins stage. Game-Lord, Unsold Stuff Gaming, Rix.GG, Sentinels, Furious Gaming, STMN Esports, Keyd Stars, and Kwangdong Freecs were all eliminated and will take home US$10,000 in consolation.
The Group Stage of the Icons will resume on Tuesday (21 June). Fans can watch the tournament online through the official Wild Rift Twitch and YouTube channels.
For everything you need to know about the Wild Rift Icons Global Championship, check here.
Anna is a freelance writer and photographer. She is a gamer who loves RPGs and platformers, and is a League of Legends geek. She's also a food enthusiast who loves a good cup of black coffee.
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