A scrappy wild card team from Russia just made the unthinkable a reality.
Albus NoX Luna took down the top seed in the League of Legends World Championship, Korea’s ROX Tigers. The 66-minute marathon on Thursday clinched a spot in the quarterfinals for Albus NoX, making them the first wildcard team to ever advance through the tournament’s group stage.
Support Kirill “Likkrit” Malofeev was the last-man standing as his Taric wailed away on ROX’s nexus along with a host of super minions. ROX pulled off two miracle Baron steals to even stay in the game, which Albus NoX controlled from the very start.
The crowd shouted and chanted for the Russian side after the win. They quickly became a fan favorite for their ultra-aggressive play, unconventional team compositions, and incredible team cohesion. They’ve also got the attitude to back it all up.
Albus NoX beat Europe’s top seed G2 Esports and twice defeated North America’s Counter Logic Gaming to set themselves up to clinch a spot in the quarterfinals. The only game Albus NoX lost was their opening match against ROX. They can wrap up the top seed from Group A with a win in their final game against G2.
CLG and ROX face off in Thursday’s final match to see which other team from Group A will advance.
