After Week 2 of the LEC, it is clear some teams improved, showing clear changes in drafting and execution. It is also evident that some teams have not yet developed. We’d like to remind you that these are ranks of a team’s current strength, mainly based on team’s week-to-week performances and overall trends in success. Our goal is to voice our opinions while also inciting discussion among the community. We hope you enjoy these, and if you have any comments or suggestions, please let us know!

1: G2 Esports (4-0)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: 0 (From 1st)

G2’s approach to their game against Excel was surprisingly smart, featuring a flex pick Sejuani and a counter Bot lane into Xayah and Rakan. Their execution, though, fell flat as they allowed Excel’s Caedral to secure 6 kills in the first 20 minutes of the game. Unfortunately for the Excel lineup, a strong meta draft paired with a 5 kill lead and an Infernal advantage was not enough to force G2 out of the game. In the near 45 minute game, Excel failed negate the Gold lead G2 had throughout, and more importantly, failed to hold down Caps. Despite his team’s best efforts to lose, the European superstar hard carried G2, navigating teamfights exceptionally while dealing the most damage in the game. This game lacked the MVP performance expected of Mikyx, and Jankos was far from impressive. If anything, the game against Excel showcased just how strong the G2 lineup are on an individual basis where just about any member of the team can carry the team to victory.

The game against Rogue was far more one-sided, with Rogue picking Karthus jungle into the team that debuted it the week before. G2 masterfully countered this pick with a top jungle duo of Karma and Ivern. With a team loaded with shield power, damage reduction, and hard engage, the Karthus pick was rendered useless. G2 crushed Rogue in lanes, developing a 5,100 gold lead at 15, finishing off the nexus shortly after 23 minutes.

G2’s Week 2 revealed the pure talent in this organization. In both their game’s, the draft phases were innovative, loaded with counter picks. It’s unknown whether these strategies work into higher level teams, but the confidence to draft as they did on stage says something on its own.

With Misfits falling this week to Vitality, G2 have become the clear favorites in the LEC to seize the trophy. The question is: When, if at all, will this team receive their first defeat, and is this the team Europe needs to win their first ever international title/event?

2: Misfits (3-1)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: 0 (From 2nd)

To many people’s’ surprise, Misfits changed up their dominating game plan this week… Their game one draft lacked strong, favored lanes, but rather was focused towards scaling until Hans Sama’s Vayne picked up Guinsoo’s Rageblade on his Vayne. After an unpunished early game, Misfits proved their control with a duo baron just before 22 minutes, but faltered shortly after, extending the game a few minutes. With the power of three Infernal Drakes, Misfits didn’t hold back, taking an open fight mid, securing 3 quick kills and a nexus to follow.

Their game against Vitality was not as successful, though. This super team showed that even they, a super team, could bleed. Through playing through Soaz, Misfits acquired a quick gold lead, but an uncharacteristic mistake by Gorilla evened out the gold shortly after. Going into the mid game without a large lead, Misfits were outpaced by Vitality, taking unfavorable fights and losing nearly every exchange after 15 minutes. The game continued on this trend, and Vitality proved even this super team could bleed.

It appears that Misfits were experimenting this week, straying away from what they found success on in the previous week. Maxlore did not have great performances on the Karthus and Febiven was still figuring out what all of Galio’s abilities do by the time the Vitality game finished. The other three members in Soaz, Hans Sama, and Gorilla, all played relatively well, and we expect Misfits to come into next week looking for results rather than on-stage practice.

Misfits still remain as #2 on the list as their faltering seemed to be more related to them testing less comfortable strategies on stage rather than falling in skill.

3: Vitality (3-1)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: +3 (From 6th)

Vitality is a team that is greater than the sum of their parts; they lack star power across the roster, but make up for it with sheer teamwork. After making only 1 roster change this off season, we had looked towards Vitality to be one of the team’s dominating the early weeks of the LEC, and after an unconvincing first week, they’ve seemingly returned to their former selves, reminding us of their miraculous World’s 2018 run. In this week, they averaged a 1k gold lead at 15 minutes, and had one of the shortest average game times at 29:32.

This week, Vitality had some stand out performances from their solo lanes. In the Top lane, Cabochard averaged a +646 gold difference at 15 (4th), and had 536 DPM (3rd). In the mid lane, Jizuke had the highest damage per minute of the LEC Mids at 692, and was up an average of +388 Gold (3rd) and 36 CS (1st) by 15. And despite low damage numbers, it should be noted that Attila secured an average Gold difference of +1224 (2nd) at 15 this week.

In their first game, they rolled Fnatic, securing a sizeable early Gold advantage through farming and pressure, with that lead snowballing Vitality to victory.

Their second game against Misfits was even more impressive, with Vitality handing the super-team their first loss off the back of Jizuke’s masterclass performance on LeBlanc. Going 6/0/5, Jizuke dealt 39.9% of his team’s total damage, picking off many of Misfit’s key players in the backline. Meanwhile, Jactroll held off Hans Sama in the Bot lane, blocking the Misfits AD Carry from ever becoming relevant. The game quickly became a collection of team fights that Vitality continually won, and before 30 minutes, the game was over.

A solid two games and apparent return to form place Vitality comfortably at the 3rd place spot on the rankings, and with a continued hot streak, may land them at the top of the table soon enough.

4: Schalke 04 (3-1)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: +1 (From 5th)

Schalke came into Week 2 of the LEC exactly like we’d hope they would: focusing much more on their early game, resulting in them getting both first bloods and first towers in their two games. Additionally, they changed their draft, taking two hard engage team compositions with a Kaisa backline for their carry. Last week, we mentioned Upset wanting to cement himself as one of the Europe’s best, and this week, he really showed his thirst for that. Upset made up 31.3% of his team’s damage in Week 2 and averaged a 35.0 KDA, as well as a KPA of 85.7%. His outstanding performances this week played a pivotal role in Schalke’s wins over SK and Fnatic, but what would an AD Carry be without his Support? Ignar, Upset’s partner in the Bot lane, sported an 11.7 KDA, arguably carrying the game in his own right. His importance to the team is clearly seen in his participation in 35 of 41 of his teams total kills.

Another immense improvement came from their rookie Mid laner, Abbedagge. His stats were no more impressive than they were last week, but his engages were flawless and he seemed to be on the same page as the rest of the team. Although it has only been two weeks, Abbedagge seems to be gunning for the LEC’s first Rookie of the Split award.

After a successful week, Schalke have moved up in our rankings, but will remain out of our top 3 until we see this team perform against other top teams.

5: Splyce (3-1)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: +3 (From 8th)

Splyce’s Week 2 performance was night and day from Week 1. Playing faster and more proactive games, Splyce was able to amass sizeable early leads in both their games: averaging around 4300 gold at 15 minutes. Much of what Splyce did this week was possible in part due to Kobbe and Xerxe’s standout week.

In the game against Rogue, Xerxe, playing Karthus, went 11/1/7 and dealt an out-of-this-world 37.2% of his team’s total damage. By 15 minutes, Xerxe was up on Kikis by 44 CS, 1,800 gold, and sat at 3/0/2. The game snowballed out of control from there on, with Rogue being unable to do much against a very fed Karthus. His game against Origen was less impressive, but he did well in getting Kobbe ahead, who went 5/0/8 and won engage after engage for Splyce with his positioning.

Splyce showed clear improvements this week, and if they continue to grow at the pace they just did, those super-teams might not feel so super anymore.

6: SK (2-2)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: -2 (From 4th)

SK Gaming continues to show that they belong in the LEC—just not in its upper half.

In their first game, they were handed a defeat by Schalke, a considerably stronger team than their own. The gold had stagnated until SK continued to take, and lose, fights.

Against Excel, they displayed a contrary performance. They garnered a lead mainly through farming and slowly taking objectives, as well as Excel basic ally rolling over and dying. With a Baron secure, SK Gaming rushed into their enemy’s base, winning a single teamfight, and picking up the game victory.

This team clearly has some decent talent, but lack a true carry player. Seeing this team grow throughout the year will be exciting, but with how the LEC is looking right now, the SK organization are far from breaking into the top 5 of the league.

7: Origen (1-3)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: -4 (From 3rd)

In a region of talented players, there always has to be a worst somewhere, and securing himself on the Origen roster, Kold land’s himself as the worst performing jungler in the LEC. At 15, he’s averaged a Gold deficit of 484 gold, an XP deficit of 390, and was part of no first bloods in the past week. He, along with teammates Alphari and Mithy, held the worst KDA of all players this past week at 0.9.

As a team, Origen secured only 3 turrets in the entire week, and had some of the worst early games of all games.

Against Misfits, the Origen roster was entirely outmatched, especially in the jungle and bot lane. Past 6 minutes, they sat at a gold deficit, and remained there until the end of the game.

Into Splyce, the game was similarly disappointing, securing only 3 kills in the 30 minute game. Origen lacked the proactivity that the improving teams of the LEC have displayed, and lost this game without showing much of anything.

This team, as we highlighted last week, has the potential to be very good, but also has a similar potential to be very bad. At best, they’re a top 3 team, and at worst (as we’ve seen), they are a bottom three team. Without showcasing any improvement or changes in the entire week, Origen have shot down the rankings.



This week’s performance reminds us that Deficio can always come back to the caster desk, and with how Origen looked this week, it’s not looking too unlikely.

8: Excel (1-3)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: +1 (From 9th)

There was little hope for the Excel team as Week 2 came to a close; many other teams looked to improve while they showed very little growth. One of the big hopes for this team would be if Kasing could pick up Zilean and unlock his hidden ability – ‘True Revive’ – The ability to revive his team’s chances in the LEC.

Their games were lackluster this week. While they (Or rather, Caedral) showed to be competitive against G2, Excel ultimately failed to secure any leads during that game and were eventually outmatched by the manpower behind G2’s lineup.

Against SK, Excel more or less rolled over and died, securing only 1 kill and 1 tower throughout the entire game, while being down by a substantial amount at 15 (-4,700 gold).

If Excel does want to come back, they should begin by playing to their strengths, drafting Caedral a strong early game junglers and playing through their bot lane to gain them an advantage early on. If done well, Excel could stand to rise slightly in the rankings, but for now, I just don’t see that happening.

9: Fnatic (0-4)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: -2 (Was 7th)

I, for one, dislike seeing Fnatic at the bottom of the table. Historically, when Fnatic has done well, they’ve gone on to perform well internationally, as opposed to G2’s tendency to take vacations after doing poorly. After a long 2018, it seems the two have swapped, with Fnatic taking their own vacation instead for the duration of the Spring Split. With little World’s implications in Spring, this strategy is understandable for last year’s Finalists. Moreover, Rekkles has taken this split to prove to the world that he is not a KDA player after all, dying more in last weeks games than he has in previous splits.

In Week 2, Fnatic games told a similar story: Lose every lane, fall further behind, and inevitably lose the game. With 4 of their 5 players packing a negative Gold difference at 15 (Only Hylissang has a positive Gold difference at 15), Fnatic displayed little-to-no development since their Week 1 performance.

As one of the only teams coming into the week without a victory, there seems to be little hope for Fnatic, but let’s take a look at what they can look forward to in this week’s LEC games: Patch 9.2 hit almost every meta Mid lane pick, including item and Rune nerfs as well; the jungle and Baron buffs both took pretty decent hits as well. With these changes, every team has to adapt once again, and—if Fnatic can be the first to figure out Patch 9.2—they could reasonably go 2-0 in Week 3 of the LEC.

Fnatic currently sit in 9th on our Power Ranks as they’ve shown nothing positive to note, but they may not sit here long as we expect the former world finalists to bounce back in the latter half of the LEC.

10: Rogue (0-4)

Change from Previous Week’s Standing: 0 (From 10th)

After another disastrous week, Rogue can comfort themselves knowing there’s no more chance of relegation at the end of the split.

Rogue now has an even worse Gold differential at 15 of -3329 gold, has secured 1 out of 15 dragons across all their games (6%), destroyed a total of 4 towers across 4 games, and have secured 0 First Bloods and First Towers. As of right now, not a single player on Rogue has demonstrated the capability to be their go-to carry, and if they can’t find one soon, I don’t see their season improving.

With all that being said, Rogue has had perhaps the toughest schedule out of any team in the LEC, already playing against both G2 and Misfits, as well as a fired up Splyce. Sadly, with the level of play they’ve shown thus far, it’s tough to see Rogue winning a match anytime soon.

MVP of the Week: Upset

Upset had perhaps the best week of his entire career, topping the charts for practically every stat and dominating team fights. Playing two games of Kai’Sa, Upset repeatedly displayed perfect positioning, allowing him to be a part of 35 of Schalke’s 41 kills in Week 2, netting him an 85.3% KPA (82.6%, 88.8%, respectively). Moreover, across both games, Upset only died once (Going 10/1/9 against FNC and 8/0/8 against SK), netting him a 35 KDA (1st). As if that wasn’t enough, Upset had a ridiculous CS per minute figure at 11.5 (1st), +1683 Gold differential at 15 minutes (1st), +13 CS differential at 15 (2nd), as well as participating in both First Bloods for his team this week. Finally, his Kai’Sa dished out an absurd amount of damage, dealing 725 damage per minute (2nd), safely putting him as our MVP for this week. Upset clearly wants to show everyone that he is a force to be reckoned, and is one Europe’s best. If he continues to put out these kinds of performances, he surely will.

Predictions for Week 3

Saturday, February 1

Match 1: SK Gaming vs. G2 Esports

Predicted Winner: G2

G2 have shown that they’re not untouchable, but SK Gaming is not the team we look to take them down. To win this game, SK Gaming are going to need to majorly improve their performance. If they win their lanes and prevent G2 from winning fights, this game is doable—Unexpected, but not impossible.

Match 2: Splyce vs. Schalke 04

Predicted Winner: Schalke

Splyce vs. Schalke will be a good indication of which team will end in the top four of the LEC. Both teams displayed considerable growth from their first week and from top to bot, it is challenging to find a player considerably stronger than their opponent. The main difference between these two teams lies in the bot lane of Schalke, where continued MVP performances should be enough to tilt the game in their favor. If you’re looking to only tune into a few LEC games this week, this is one I highly recommend taking a look at.

Match 3: Fnatic vs. Rogue

Predicted Winner: Fnatic

If it was possible for both teams to lose in a game of League of Legends, this would be the game to find out.

This is Fnatic’s last opportunity to convince us they can make playoffs and Rogue’s shot at proving they deserve their spot in the league. However, neither team has shown any real promise in these two weeks and we expect a complete mess of a game as each team fights for their first win in the LEC.

Match 4: Excel vs. Misfits

Predicted Winner: Misfits

In the third week of the LEC, Misfits should return to what has worked so far and keep the experimentation to scrims. If this is the case, Misfits are the heavy favorites coming into this match. However, if Misfits continue practicing their “can we win 4v5” strategy that they employed against Vitality, this game can go either way.

Match 5: Origen vs. Vitality

Predicted Winner: Vitality

In Week 2, Vitality reminded us they’re still pretty good and Origen reminded us why Mithy was replaced on TSM. It seems like Origen has fallen behind in improving team synergy while Vitality played like an absolute unit. With the two teams showing no indication of stopping these trends, a Vitality win should come fast and easily.

Saturday, February 2nd

Match 1: G2 Esports vs Splyce

Predicted Winner: G2 Esports

Even with Splyce’s upswing, it’s tough to imagine G2 dropping a game after what they’ve shown thus far. But with the patch hitting many of Caps’ power picks, Humanoid may be able to nullify the mid lane, leaving G2 having to find a lead somewhere else. If the game does drag on, all eyes will be on Kobbe to prove AD isn’t a role you perfect in a month.

Match 2: Excel vs Schalke

Predicted Winner: Schalke

This game may not be the big test for Schalke that we’d like to see, but it will challenge them in how cleanly they can look against a bottom team. If they continue polishing their early to mid game stages, this game should not take long. On the flipside, this is the perfect game for Excel to prove that they’re true contenders. Schalke have shown weaknesses and Excel have shown they can take advantages of a team’s weakness.

Match 3: SK Gaming vs. Origen

Predicted Winner: Origen

SK Gaming and Origen are two teams with potential that haven’t seemed to click just yet. Whichever team shapes up the most will most likely take the win. With that being said, the combination of having seasoned veterans and a strong support staff gives Origen a slight advantage in our book.

Match 4: Vitality vs. Rogue

Predicted Winner: Vitality

Vitality are nowhere near unbeatable, but the tools are just not there for Rogue. They’ve got a meddling bot lane, weak solo lanes, and Kikis; Vitality has a strong bot lane, explosive solo laners, and Korean Kikis. Anything less than a stomp would be a disappointment for the Vitality organization.

Match 5: Misfits vs. Fnatic

Predicted Winner: Misfits

A Fnatic win would mean a lot for the boys in orange, but as of right now, it’s very unlikely. With an actual bot lane and quickly developed synergy, Misfits are a step above Fnatic.

For this game, Soaz comes in to demonstrate that he’s the superior top laner, while Febiven comes in looking to prove that Fnatic should’ve written him a blank check: Both pretty obvious by now.

We hope you enjoyed this second installment of LEC power-rankings. If you have any comments, questions, or complaints, please feel free to ask them in the Comments section below.