The only all-Chinese roster in the bubble matches has been knocked out.

Since TES successfully qualified for Worlds, numerous LPL fans have lamented the league’s future, noting that only BLG is a full Chinese squad among the World Championship participants, while TES and AL advanced with the help of Korean players. Consequently, many looked forward to WBG’s showing in the bubble matches, particularly since WBG had removed their key player Tarzan this year to form an all-Chinese roster. Many viewers and commentators even believed that based on WBG’s playoff performance, they were likely to become the LPL’s fourth seed.

However, something unexpected happened that surprised many LPL fans: WBG stumbled in the crucial match against JDG. Notably, WBG’s jungler, Xiaotian, did not replicate his playoff “breakout” form (where he dominated Tarzan), but instead was outperformed by JDG’s jungler XUN, who earned MVP in three consecutive games. After JDG’s 3-1 victory over WBG, the only all-Chinese team in the LPL bubble matches missed out on Worlds, leaving many fans disappointed that Xiaohu would not attend the championship.

TES emerges as the biggest winner?

Although Xiaotian did not deliver a breakout performance during the matches, his gameplay was relatively normal. The main reason WBG lost to JDG was due to the poor form of their support Liu Qingsong, who was a weak link both in lane and teamfights. In particular, in the second game, despite holding a big advantage, Liu Qingsong’s reckless play on Neeko—flashing in aggressively to initiate—led to WBG being overturned by JDG. Many TES fans joked that because Liu Qingsong’s Neeko play was so unpredictable, TES banned Neeko regardless of side in their matches.

With support Liu Qingsong missing out on Worlds, MSI champion mid laner Cryin and Smlz criticized him sharply during live streams. Smlz said that any LPL support would be happy to lane with JKL, and if a support cannot perform well with JKL, then that support has problems. Following Smlz’s remarks, many TES fans felt grateful for TES’s transfer decisions, with some even believing that if Liu Qingsong had stayed on TES, their qualification for Worlds would have been in serious doubt.

IG deserter’s second betrayal sparks heated discussion

After JDG defeated WBG, they were set to face IG in a do-or-die bubble match, with the winner going on to play LCK’s T1 in a best-of-five for a spot at the S15 World Championship. Many LPL commentators and hosts predicted that IG would secure the LPL’s fourth seed after JDG’s win over WBG. However, JIEJIE, who has been mocked as an “IG deserter” by Ning, openly cheered for JDG during his livestream. JIEJIE believed that IG was unlikely to beat JDG in their current form and that Scout would prove his true strength during the match.

JIEJIE’s biased prediction upset many IG fans, especially since IG is his former team and IG’s support MEIKO is his old teammate. Many viewers couldn’t understand why JIEJIE seemed to “dislike” IG so much. Previously, when IG played TES, JIEJIE constantly praised TES, and now with IG facing JDG, he openly supported JDG. (Of course, JIEJIE’s prediction of JDG winning didn’t matter much, as IG had not lost to JDG all year.)

Conclusion

The key battleground between IG and JDG will be the mid lane, as IG’s biggest issue currently is Rookie’s decline in form. In matches against BLG, AL, and TES, Rookie was suppressed in lane early, causing IG to fall behind in the early game. Whether Rookie can hold his own against Scout is crucial, although Scout’s form is also not at its peak.