Another League of Legends tournament yields another victory for Korea – Gen.G Esports World Cup victory keeps the region at the top of the world.
Meanwhile, Europe attempt to shake some doomsayers with a fourth-place finish from G2.
Gen.G Esports World Cup success follows their MSI title win
Early favourites to win the tournament, Gen.G arrived at the Esports World Cup riding the wave of their back-to-back MSI victory. Their successful Midseason Invitational performance saw them defeat T1 to secure the title for a second consecutive year.
Alongside the three other top four teams at MSI, Gen.G bypassed the Esports World Cup Group Stage. Gen.G, T1, Anyone’s Legend, and BiliBili Gaming all received an express pass to the Playoffs.
As a result, they only played three games in the tournament.
Their Grand Finals competitors, Anyone’s Legend, also only played three games. They defeated MSI runner-up T1 in the Semifinals, pushing T1 down to the third-place match against G2, whom Gen. G had demoted.
Both teams were able to exchange wins, leading to a full five-game series.
Eventually, Gen.G placed the final nail in Anyone’s Legend’s coffin, finishing the series at 3-2. Toplaner Kim ‘Kiin’ Gi-in was named the Finals MVP.
G2 reignites a shred of hope for European teams as they claim fourth place
Crushing failure plagued European League of Legends teams at MSI 2025. The region’s two representatives, G2 Esports and Movistar KOI, had failed to win a single game on the main stage.
However, the Esports World Cup revealed a glimmer of hope for European fans.
Bouncing back from their abysmal MSI performance, G2 were able to defeat Furia and FlyQuest in best-of-one Group Stage games. In the Playoffs, they were then able to beat the top-four MSI team, BiliBili Gaming, in a best-of-three series, eliminating the Chinese team 2-1.
Unfortunately, G2’s Esports World Cup miracle run ended in the Semifinals, when they fell to eventual champions Gen.G and were left at T1’s mercy for the 3rd place match.
Nevertheless, their win against BiliBili shows that perhaps the European region is not doomed… at least, not quite yet.
Continuing the road to the World Championship
As predicted by Esports News UK and League of Legends betting sites, Gen.G Esports World Cup victory was waiting on the horizon following their MSI win. So, what’s next for the team?
Now that they have two LAN titles under their belt and an automatic qualification to the World Championship, Gen.G will hope to end the 2025 season on a high.
Meanwhile, T1 will be re-examining their tactics for the next T1-Gen.G showdown. When the World Championship rolls around, they will need to defend their title to earn a three-year win streak. Otherwise, Gen.G might achieve a clean sweep of 2025 LAN trophies.
Hannah is a writer specialising in the esports, gaming, and technology sectors. Working for outlets such as Dot Esports, Esports Insider, and of course ENUK, she has developed a love for wider esports and Apex Legends, although it may never surpass her drive to passionately beat her friends in every game of Mariokart. You may have seen her at various esports and gaming events, including ESI London, EGX, Discover: Esports and many League of Legends watch parties.