League of Legends World Championship 2019 Play-In phase has come to its last stage as the knockout draw has been completed, with a bit of mishap during the draw itself.
All four pairings for the knockout stage are now revealed and European players will likely not be happy with how it turned out. Conspiracy theorists will likely have a field day as well, since the first seed pool wasn't entirely incognito.
Namely, one of the balls opened prematurely, revealing it was that of Clutch Gaming. Riot Games attendant stepped in to mend the situation while SOAz, who was making the draw turned away in order to ensure the validity of the picks. Anyway, let's get on to matchups.
Hong Kong Attitude vs Isurus Gaming
HKA secured the first spot in Group C without too much trouble, dropping only one match along the way. Furthermore, they faced what was arguably the fiercest competition across all Play-In groups and didn't flinch. This kind of performance would make them a bit of a favourite to win the matchup.
On the other hand, Isurus Gaming may have gone 2-2 in groups but the matches they dropped were against Splyce, a team that has a great season behind it, so it's possible Isurus might still find their footing and give HKA some trouble or even an upset.
Clutch Gaming vs Royal Youth
This matchup is bound to have a lot of controversy behind it due to the draw ball mishap. It didn't help that CG previously stated Royal Youth would be the ideal opponent in knockout stage beforehand. Clutch Gaming are the clear favourites in this matchup, especially because the team had a second wind in the latter stages in groups.
League of Legends - showcase of several champion splash arts
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Damwon Gaming vs Lowkey Esports
Lowkey Esports really drew the short straw on this one. Along with UOL, they are possibly the strongest second seed and they are up against the Korean behemoth that just rolled over its group stage.
Splyce vs Unicorns of Love
This is the matchup that European fans will most likely be angry about. Many saw UOL as an opportunity for Europe to have sort of a fourth team in the Main Event but this draw means either Splyce or UOL will go out. It's still important to note that UOL are actually representing CIS region.
It will be an interesting match for some players though. Vizicsacsi came into the spotlight during his time with UOL and his old coach, Sheepy, is still at the helm of UOL, regardless of their region.
