With the rumble stage of the 2022 Mid-Season Invitational concluding on May 24, the remaining League of Legends teams are now waiting for the knockout stage to begin. Over the next weekend, Evil Geniuses will face off against Royal Never Give Up while T1 match up with G2 Esports.
The qualification of all the four major regions to the playoffs was expected, but they advanced in a dominant fashion. This year, the top four regions recorded a 33-3 record against the minor regions, with the LEC’s G2 being responsible for all three losses. The European squad lost twice against PSG Talon and once to Saigon Buffalo in the rumble stage.
RNG, T1, and EG—the remaining three squads from the major regions—didn’t lose a single game to a minor region side across both the group and rumble stages of the tournament.
Since the rumble stage of the event has ended, notable names from the League community have spoken out about the length of the tournament and the format it follows. MonteCristo, a former commentator and coach, criticized the tedious structure of the event and said there’s “zero point to running a format with this level of regional imbalance. But others voiced a different perspective on the matter.
Former LEC caster Froskurinn said the format helps to increase viewership and “sustainability globally.” That being said, viewership of the group stage was down by 37 percent this year, according to MonteCristo.
MSI 2022 concludes with the knockout stage on Friday, May 27.
