The only team that didn’t make any changes compared to last year, G2 Esports are looking to run it back in more ways than one.
The start of the 2024 LEC Winter Split is only 3 days away! Teams like MAD Lions KOI, Karmine Corp, SK Gaming and Team Heretics are ready for the fray – as well as all their opponents, since every team has their rosters locked in for a while now.
The only squad that didn’t make adjustments to their lineup out of the 10 participants is last year’s champions, G2 Esports. They are running it back with the same team – but hopefully, aiming higher than getting knocked out by an LCS team from Worlds.
G2 Esports in 2023
G2 Esports was the most successful squad of the 2023 season. After signing Hans sama for ADC, re-signed Mikyx for Support and got rookie Jungler Yike from the LFL, the team was looking stronger than ever. They proved that right out of the gate when they won the first ever LEC Winter Playoffs – though they needed to step up a bit after finishing 4th in the Winter Group Stage.
While they had a lacklustre Spring Split with a 3rd and a 4th spot, they locked in their Mid-Season Invitational spot with their Winter win. They were the best Western team in the competition (sharing the spot with the LCS’s Cloud9), but still only made it to Round 2 of the Double Elimination bracket.
Fans were starting to doubt them after they didn’t win Spring and failed to get into the top 4 of the first international event last year. However, they showed every doubter that they are still the Kings of Europe, and that their 3 new signings are a great addition to their team. Thanks to the unpredictability of Yike and the stable duo of Mikyx and Hans sama, they won the 2023 LEC Summer Season, as well as the Playoffs, in which they beat Excel Esports 3-0 during the Finals. They became the first ever champions of the LEC Season Finals, losing only 3 matches and no series, beating long time rivals Fnatic 3-1 in the last match of the LEC.
This prompted the fans of the LEC to believe that G2 could win Worlds last year, or at least come very close. That dream was shattered by both the LCK and the LPL, as well as North American champions NRG, who knocked G2 out of the tournament right before the Playoffs, meaning that no LEC team qualified for the last hurdle of Worlds.
G2 Esports 2024 Roster
- Top: Sergen “BrokenBlade” Celik
- Jungle: Martin “Yike” Sundelin
- Mid: Rasmus “Caps” Borregaard Winther
- ADC: Steven “Hans sama” Liv
- Support: Mihael “Mikyx” Mehle
Don’t Change What’s Not Broken
Still, G2 Esports had a great year in the LEC, even though their international performances left some things to be desired. While both Caps and Hans sama had some weaker periods during last year, they are still top-notch players that can shine incredibly bright under the right circumstances, as Hans have shown near the end of the season, while Caps was a force to be reckoned with during Winter and Summer as well.
Mikyx had a stable performance all throughout the year, but as he’s a roaming/enabler support, he can only be as good as the rest of his team – which is very good most of the times, but G2 Esports tends to fall apart in some matches.
Yike was one of the best junglers last year, second only to the greatest like Razork and Elyoya. However, he has an advantage over these players thanks to his unique picks such as Bel’Veth. Even though Yoya (and some junglers from the LCS) tried to play the Void Empress as well, they weren’t as successful as last season’s Rookie of the Year.
To round it all out, BrokenBlade still might be the best pro in the LEC. He does it all: has unique and surprising picks, can play weak and stronside as well, and shotcalls for his team from the most isolated role in League of Legends. I attribute most the success of G2 Esports in the last few years to the Turkish toplaner, as he was the glue that holds the Kings together.
G2 Esports 2024 Predictions
While there’s room to grow for G2 Esports in 2024 – especially on the international level – I believe they made the right call by not swapping anyone in the roster. Yike and Hans only joined last year, while Mikyx returned to a completely different G2 that he left after that disastrous 2021 split. They were still unparalleled in the LEC, so their domestic success is almost sure. The only problem is living up to the LCK and the LPL – and the LCS, which hasn’t been the case for years. Still, G2 is one of, if not the best team in the LEC.
Pictures: G2 Esports X