This weekend in eSports, several new champions made their mark in various games and league. In the first-ever LCS Mid-Season Showdown finals, Cloud9, led by Perkz, toppled Team Liquid. Across the Atlantic, MAD Lions won the LEC Spring Split over Rogue. Launched into the decisive match by an upset against G2, MAD Lions narrowly capitalized with a reverse sweep when it was most needed. For the first time since 2014, the finals excluded both G2 and Fnatic. Additionally, this was MAD’s first time at the top, and quite the debut.
In VCT Challengers One, 100 Thieves defeated XSET for the Grand Final victory, plus $20,000. This big win succeeds a week which saw content creators Valkyrae and CourageJD become co-owners alongside Nadeshot.
Two of our creators @Valkyrae & @CouRageJD have been integral to our success as an organization these past few years. Today, we’re so thrilled to announce both of them as co-owners of 100 Thieves! #100Thieves pic.twitter.com/zViRHTYG02
— 100 Thieves (@100Thieves) April 7, 2021
Over in the CDL’s second Major Championship, Toronto Ultra upset Atlanta Faze. Prior to the bout, Toronto went on a spree against Minnesota RØKKR and Dallas Empire. The victors had also gone through some massive roster changes to accomplish their goal; in March, they benched K/D leader Methodz for the rookie Insight, who debuted by breaking the CDL Search and Destroy kill record.
Finally, Heroic defeated Gambit Esports in the Grand Finals of ESL Pro League Season 13. CadiaN finished the eight-hour contest for Heroic with a legendary 1v4 play featuring a knife kill and three well-placed shots.
All in all, it was a weekend of new eSports champions across the industry, complete with upsets and clutch plays.
