EU RLCS Winter Regional Event 1 Predictions

It's finally here! After ages of waiting, the winter split has finally arrived for European RLCS, for which we've provided the following predictions:

Group A:

A solid group for sure, but there should be no question about BDS coming out on top of Group A quite comfortably. From there, most of the results could go either way, however, whispers surrounding Luminosity heading into winter have been very promising, and 00 Nation's experience from fall should be enough to see them through in 2nd and 3rd respectively.

Group B:

3 teams seemingly contending for the winter major, and one team that didn't qualify for a single fall regional. Although Rix looked solid in the closed qualifier, main event is a different breed, and they will struggle to contend with these high calibre teams. On the other hand, Dignitas is currently not only a top EU roster, but also one of the best in the world and should thus top the group, with Misfits likely to come back after a disappointing end to fall to place second in the group ahead of Queso in third.

Group C:

Group C is likely going to be the tightest group of the 4, with all four teams have the ability to produce close series'. SMPR exhibited their poise at the major and are thus likely to top the group, with EG still a top tier team after last split that was arguably unfortunate to not be sent to Stockholm. After that, Kuxir's Minions and Williams Resolve is a toss up, but even if Resolve is a consistent, solid team, our bold pick is for the Minions to clutch up and nab the final spot in playoffs.

Group D:

Here comes our true bold prediction. Endpoint and Karmine Corp are, in my opinion, two of the current top 5 European teams and will be the top 2 teams in Group D. On the other side of the equation, NAVI have a lot of potential and drive to place higher, which could be enough to scrape out a series win against the experienced, yet under siege, Team Vitality, who will have to fight from the get go to even make playoffs.

Upper Bracket Semi Finals:

In my eyes, these 4 teams are currently 4 of Europe's best, and as shown on LAN, the gap between them shouldn't be too large. However, BDS proved in Stockholm that they're the best team in the world, which should make for a tight, yet victorious, series over Endpoint. In the second matchup, our pick is for Dignitas to return to their swiss stage dominance and extract revenge on SMPR, who ruined Dignitas' run in Stockholm with a shock upset.

Lower Bracket Round 1 - Semi Finals:

The first round should be reasonably tame, with 4 contenders playing 3 tier 2 teams, as well as Luminosity likely to get the upper hand over Queso, who looked far less strong in closed qualifiers. Karmine Corp have the raw mechanics to find themselves in top 6, but are likely to be outclassed by a more consistent SMPR when it matters, whilst Misfits will be crushed by Endpoint, who when bootcamping, are a force to be reckoned with, as they'll prove again in lower semis.

Top 3:

Team BDS looked the best on LAN, and our expectation is for them to continue that dominance will continue in the online circuit. As for the battle for second place, Dignitas and Endpoint are difficult to seperate, but the confidence of the lower bracket run and bootcamp environment should be enough to send Endpoint to grands.