After multiple years without an LPL World Championship title, many esports viewers teased that "LOL is fading away." Yet, when the LOL World Championship was held in China, many LPL fans discovered that the matches some claimed were losing steam were actually incredibly difficult to get tickets for. Previously, tickets for the IG vs. T1 play-in match sold out in just 3 seconds. Many LPL fans reassured themselves that it was due to T1 and IG’s immense popularity causing the ticket rush. However, after the official release of S15 finals tickets, many fans realized they had underestimated the popularity of LOL matches.

Many well-known LOL bloggers and streamers publicly complained that the S15 finals tickets were extremely hard to obtain. Some insiders even revealed that the difficulty of getting S15 finals tickets was comparable to that of the IG play-in tickets. Meanwhile, LPL official caster Wang Duoduo also posted, stating there are no internal channels to acquire S15 finals tickets and urged fans not to ask streamers via private messages. Additionally, some viewers speculated that if the finals were to be contested between two LCK teams, it could mean the end of LPL’s dominance.

Of course, some fans criticized the LOL officials for not taking the S15 World Championship seriously enough, as one netizen who visited the finals venue found it could only hold 13,000 spectators. To put this in perspective, the S7 finals at the Bird’s Nest stadium accommodated 90,000 attendees. Compared to that, the current finals stage seems rather modest, prompting many LPL fans to call for a venue change. What do you think — will the S15 World Championship venue be changed? (If an LPL team reaches the finals, I feel the officials might really consider switching venues.)

TheShy’s win rate against LCK teams revealed.

As the LOL World Championship approaches, the win rates of LPL teams against LCK are gradually coming to light. Among them, the five IG players’ records against LCK have many LPL fans worried. Only GALA holds a winning rate above 50% against LCK teams. ROOKIE has a 47% win rate with 8 wins and 9 losses in 17 matches, TheShy stands at 36% with 7 wins and 12 losses over 19 games, WEI holds 48% with 12 wins and 13 losses in 25 matches, and Meiko has a 47% win rate with 31 wins and 34 losses across 65 games.

Besides IG players, the win rates of T1’s five-man lineup against LPL have also been uncovered by fans. Mid laner Faker boasts an impressive career record of 75 wins and 41 losses, making him the top LCK player in win percentage. Faker has also maintained a perfect record against LPL teams in World Championship best-of-five matches. Many fans joke that if IG had eliminated T1 in the play-in stage, IG would deserve 70% of the credit for an LPL championship, given how dominant T1 has been against LPL teams in the World Championship.

Apart from Faker, the other T1 members also have high win rates against LPL teams. However, T1’s top laner Doran’s record has sparked much discussion since he holds a low 40% win rate against LPL. Many fans believe Doran could be T1’s biggest weakness, and some are eagerly watching to see whether Faker’s or Doran’s record will be broken first. (Faker has never lost a BO5 against LPL in the World Championship, while Doran has never won a BO5 against LPL.)

Conclusion.

It feels like the LOL finals stages have been getting smaller over the past few years. Last year’s S14 finals venue was also quite small. Why do you think the LOL officials keep choosing such small venues for the finals? Honestly, LOL’s popularity is very high, so picking a larger venue might have sold out tickets as well. (Among the four LPL teams, who do you think has the best chance to make it to the finals?)