There’s a tough road ahead for North American fans at the 2021 League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational. Cloud9, DWG KIA, DetonatioN FocusMe and Infinity Esports are featured in Group C at MSI, the first stage of the tournament. Once the group stage has completed, the top two teams from each group will face off against each other in the Rumble stage.
The North American side sits in joint second place alongside DetonatioN FocusMe and Infinity Esports while Korean powerhouse and the World Championship 2020 winners DWG KIA lead the group with three wins.
How Cloud9 leave groups and move to the Rumble stage at MSI
There are two slots remaining in the Rumble stage, however. Cloud9 has to earn a slot in the second phase of the tournament to progress, otherwise they—alongside the rest of North America’s hopes and dreams—are eliminated from MSI 2021.
Cloud9 is set to face off in a rematch against DK Tuesday in the first match of the day. If they win this match, Cloud9 will move to 3-1 in the pool. This would put them inches away from qualification. But they need to defeat DetonatioN FocusMe and finish 4-1 to qualify in the easiest fashion.
However this isn’t the easiest task. DK already defeated Cloud9 in the opening match of MSI and will likely pose a significant threat to Cloud9’s chances at qualification. If DK defeat Cloud9 for the second time, the North American team cannot lose to DetonatioN FocusMe or Gillette Infinity since Cloud9 would finish with a 1-5 record.
Gillette Infinity and DetonatioN FocusMe will have to face off against DWG KIA themselves, however. If either of these two teams manage to beat the reigning Champions then Cloud9 have got a mountain to climb.
But this task is not impossible. Cloud9 can still qualify for the next stage of the tournament.
The Rumble stage will begin on May 14 following a short three day break. The top two teams will join MAD Lions, Pentanet.GG, PSG Talon, and Royal Never Give Up in the Rumble Stage. The top four teams will qualify for the single elimination knockout stage while the remaining two will end their MSI 2021 run.
