LEC 2025 Winter Split power rankings: Breaking down the big fish and underdogs

The 2025 League of Legends EMEA Championship Winter Split is here, ushering in a season of fresh excitement for the league. With revamped rosters, a Noxian Summoner’s Rift map, and the first case of Fearless Draft in the region, fans have much to anticipate.

The Winter Split kicks off on Jan. 18, bringing a unique blend of rising stars and familiar faces to a new format thanks to a three-stage competition designed to reward consistency and adaptability. Each team will face a best-of-one regular season, leading into double-elimination playoffs that promise to showcase the region’s best talent. With strategic depth at an all-time high and roster moves redefining the meta, the 2025 Winter Split could mark the beginning of a new European dynasty—or the resurgence of an old one.

The apex predators

G2 Esports

G2 Esports has long been synonymous with innovation and dominance in the LEC, and its 2025 Winter Split roster reflects that legacy. 

BrokenBlade continues to anchor the top lane with his adaptability and deep champion pool, offering stability in any meta. But in the jungle, G2 said goodbye to Yike and welcomed SkewMond, who gained recognition for his intelligent pathing and creativity in the ERLs. He’s one of the newcomers joining LEC this split, and arguably the second most hyped one. Caps, the league’s most decorated mid laner, remains the cornerstone of the team, consistently delivering clutch performances that can turn the tide of any match. In the bot lane, Hans Sama and Labrov form a new duo. Together, they form a bot lane that can dominate through both laning strength and teamfight execution.

This year, head coach Dylan Falco is joined by Memento to guide this powerhouse roster. With its history of success and the combination of experience and new blood, G2 is well-equipped to contend for the Winter Split title.

Fnatic

Fnatic’s 2024 season was marked by a series of highs and lows, culminating in a strong performance during the Summer Playoffs. This season, Fnatic aims to build upon its 2024 achievements and reach for its first title in seven years.

The top lane is still held by Oscarinin, whose ability to make it work under pressure and adjust to various matchups makes him a key asset in Fnatic’s lineup. Razork remains in the jungle, and with his proactive early-game plays and ability to dictate the pace of the game, he’s the key to creating opportunities for his team to snowball advantages and clutch games. Paired with Humanoid’s sharp decision-making in the mid lane, Fnatic’s mid-jung duo will push many opponents to the limit. 

But perhaps Fnatic’s most exciting strength this split is its bot lane duo of Upset and Mikyx. Upset is widely regarded as one of the most mechanically gifted AD carries in Europe, and paired with Mikyx’s teamfighting-focused mentality, this bot lane is expected to be one of the most feared in the league. Together with GrabbZ and Gaax as coaches, this team represents a calculated effort by Fnatic to reclaim their status as a top contender. 

Karmine Corp

Karmine Corp’s inaugural LEC season in 2024 fell short of the high expectations set by their regional dominance, but its 2025 roster is built to redeem that narrative. 

Running it back in the top lane is Canna, whose ability to dominate in laning phases and influence the game with his split-pushing prowess can elevate KC to high standings. Yike, after shining with G2 in previous seasons, now leads KC’s jungle, bringing his intelligent pathing, objective control, and synergy-focused early-game play to the team. Mid laner Vladi provides consistency in the mid lane, complementing the team’s overall strategy with a steady presence.

In the bot lane, Caliste finally makes his long-awaited debut in the LEC. Hyped for several years as one of the most promising ADCs in the European scene, Caliste has built his reputation as a standout performer in the LFL. Teaming up with veteran support Targamas, who excels at enabling aggressive bot laners, the duo promises an explosive impact.

With Caliste’s long-awaited debut and Yike’s jungle prowess at the forefront, the team has both the raw skill and the strategic backing to make an immediate statement in their first LEC Split of the season.

The in-betweeners

Team Vitality

The middle of the pack always seems the most interesting in terms of Power Rankings of any sport. That’s because these teams, on paper, have the strength to upset the top dogs and fight for long runs in playoffs, possibly even for the trophies themselves. On the other hand, despite huge potential, they might also fail miserably. This year, there’s no better description of Team Vitality.

The bot lane duo of Hylissang and Carzzy has countless trophies under its name, including numerous international appearances. It’s perfect for the explosive younger generation—Czajek, Lyncas and Naak Nako—to learn from and lean on if things go south. All three have proved they deserve a shot at the LEC by reaching new heights at EMEA Masters.

Vitality have a high ceiling and could easily be the top contender this year. But if issues take over, the season could also end early for the squad.

Movistar KOI

Movistar KOI continue on the path they set in 2024. Movistar KOI rebranded from MAD Lions KOI, but the goals and the players are mostly the same—with one exception. They have a new superstar mid laner, jojopyun, the first North American player to descend upon the LEC ground and a massive upgrade over former starting player, Fresskowy.

The squad has retained the rest of its roster. KOI is betting on long-term growth, and it makes all the sense in the world. Last year, MAD Lions KOI finished third in the season finals, which allowed them to go to Worlds. While they fumbled internationally, they gained priceless experienced and are using it as a fundamental to build 2025’s success on. 

BDS

On paper, Team BDS might not look too exciting, but they have the ingredients to cook. The team is entering 2025 with two of its best players from last season, nuc and Ice. The latter is joined by Parus, a 21-year-old who already has multiple trophies under his name. The remaining rookie is 113, who has also earned respect already thanks to his achievements. The roster is rounded up by Irrelevant, an LEC expert who’s a solid addition to any roster in the LEC’s in-betweeners. 

BDS is all but flashy. They have raw talent and experience, but it’s seemingly not enough to rock the competition. And that’s why they’re perhaps the strongest of the dark horses. Without the weight of expectations, BDS can do their own thing and surprise everyone. But without any first impressions of their composure and skill, we can’t rate them higher than sixth. 

Team Heretics

Like BDS in the previous place, Heretics are an interesting roster heading into 2025. The organization acquired Sheo from BDS, who seems like one of the better junglers in the competition as of late and is continuing working with Flakked, another experienced and stellar player. The remaining three roles are filled with upcoming talents, inviting a question: Quo vadis, Heretics?

Don’t get us wrong, all three new players in Heretics’ roster have skills to make us excited about them. Carlsen, Stend and Kamiloo’s ceiling seem high, but yet to be discovered. 

The questions beckons, who will lead this Heretics roster? Will they be able to handle the pressure and develop a mutual language to compete in the LEC? Will the youngsters be able to overcome the obstacles that come alongside playing on the highest level? There are a lot of questions, and Heretics possibly might pass these tests soon enough. We can’t rank them higher before seeing them succeed on the Rift first. 

Climbing against the odds

Rogue

Rogue had a very poor showing in 2024 and was bound to make changes to their roster. And while they have made changes, it’s unclear how exactly these players are going to gel together.

Larssen has been the consistent feature on Rogue with the player staying on for another campaign. The mid laner is being reunited with Malrang, who returns to the organization after a stint in Brazil, a stint that failed to yield results. Rogue will hope the pairing of Malrang and Larssen will, at the very least, help them ascend the standings slightly after finishing in the bottom two for the entirety of the 2024 season. The wildcard for this team is Adam, an at-times controversial talent who on his day can carry his teams to victory. But when the term “on his day” is needed for a player, there are also the negatives that come with that. This feels like a team that has been scrambled together and Rogue will do well to not find themselves in similar positions to 2024. 

GIANTX

If there’s a roster that could be a surprise this season and go up a tier or two, it’s certainly GIANTX. The organization has picked up a mix of veteran talent and upcoming talent that could provide them with a good balance.

GIANTX picked up the former Fnatic bot lane of Noah and Jun. The pair had an up-and-down year but proved they were capable of being on a roster competing for titles. After spending half a year on Karmine Corp, Closer was able to land another spot in a major region. There’s evidently a player in there, and perhaps joining a fresh team that can play around him could reignite a player that was once one of the best junglers in North America. GIANTX has pieces to start off strong in the LEC, but the big question is can they put it together when it matters?

SK Gaming

After an up-and-down 2024 campaign, SK Gaming was in need of a much-needed rebuild. Sadly for fans, that rebuild will not feature one of the more prominent top laners in the LEC with Irrelevant departing for BDS. With Irrelevant heading to BDS, Reeker came the other way, marking his return to the LEC after his stint with MAD Lions in 2021. Reeker has worked his way back to the main stage after a two-year spell with BDS Academy, which saw him win the 2024 EMEA Masters Summer Main Event. It’s great to see him back on the big stage, ready to take on the best there is in Europe.