RNG's History Making Series at the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational
By Zac Cameron ·
After their victory at the Mid-Season Invitational, RNG has become one of only a handful of teams to beat Korea in a best-of-five match in League of Legends.
Winning a major event like the Mid-Season Invitational is a big deal for every team competing. As the mid-year little sibling of the World Championship, the team that claims victory will have bragging rights as the de facto best team in the world, at least until the teams meet up again at the World Championship. Another, smaller milestone that isn’t as recognized however, is the handful of teams that have managed to win a best-of-five series against a Korean team. It might seem like an odd statistic, but that fact is that it’s only happened a handful of times since professional League of Legends became a thing, as detailed in this Reddit thread.
The first time a Korean team fell in a best-of-five series was way back in season 2, when CLG.EU managed to take down NaJin Sword 3-1 in the Champions 2012 Summer Playoffs. Funnily enough, one of the members of NaJin Sword back then was non-other than Kim "PraY" Jong-in, current AD Carry for Kingzone DragonX, coming in second at this year’s MSI tournament.
The second time a non-Korean team managed to take a series away was the Grand Final of the Season 2 World Championship in 2012, where the Taipei Assassins defeated Azubu Frost 3-1. This roster wouldn’t find much success beyond this event, but their legacy does live on forever.
The third time Korea fell would not be until the Quarterfinals of the Season 4 World Championship in 2014, where OMG managed to sweep NaJin White Shield 3-0. Interestingly, the support for NaJin White Shield was Kang "GorillA" Beom-hyeon, current support for Kingzone DragonX.
The fourth time Korea failed in a best-of-five did not require a massive time gap like earlier, with Edward Gaming taking down SK Telecom T1 3-2 to claim the first ever Mid-Season Invitational crown in 2015.
This brings us to the present day, where Royal Never Give Up has claimed victory over Kingzone DragonX and taken the trophy as the winners of the 2018 Mid-Season Invitational. As only the fifth non-Korean team to claim victory in a best-of-five match, it’s easy to see why teams from Korea are considered the high-water mark for international competition. Is this the sign of the gap closing between Korea and the rest of the world, or was it just a bad day for Kingzone. Let us know what you think in the comments below, and make sure you check out the match recap from the MSI Grand Final, here.