Buzz
The LPL community selects 5 lineups for the Asian Games 2022, yet surprisingly, none of them belong to EDG, the reigning champions.
Another season has passed, and as we approach the upcoming 2022 season, alongside familiar domestic tournaments, MSI, and Worlds, there's another event catching the attention of Esports enthusiasts worldwide, particularly in the League of Legends community: the Asian Games 2022. Notably, unlike the exhibition format in 2018, Esports will now be a fully-fledged medal event. In South Korea, fans eagerly anticipate Faker securing the gold, potentially securing exemption from military service (Faker's exemption is pending official confirmation).
In the LPL, while players are not bound by military service obligations like in Korea, the Asian Games 2022 will be held in Hangzhou, China. Therefore, it's evident that Esports fans, especially those in the League of Legends community, wouldn't want the championship title to slip into Korean hands. Consequently, there's been a flurry of voting on social media platforms to select the strongest lineup for the upcoming Asian Games.
However, it's quite surprising that EDward Gaming - the reigning World Champions of 2021 - are completely absent from these lineups. Despite losing two Korean players, Scout and Viper, EDG still retains three key players in Flandre, Jiejie, and Meiko. Notably, Flandre was one of the pivotal players for EDG's success at Worlds. Yet, the top lineup is dominated by Royal Never Give Up, with only Meiko from EDG making the bench. Jiejie makes an appearance in the second lineup, and it's not until the third lineup that we see Flandre.
The explanation for this could be that RNG in the LPL represents the rich heritage of Chinese League of Legends, with a strong emphasis on using domestic players. However, if Xiaohu were placed alongside Flandre, it's clear that EDG's players are currently at their peak and in better form. As for Wei, he doesn't shine as brightly as his senior counterpart Jiejie, who played a significant role in EDG's championship victory in Iceland.
Certainly, this lineup is the result of fan voting and may not significantly impact the selection of positions for the Asian Games 2022 as China will closely monitor the Spring 2021 split and MSI 2021 to make decisions. However, it's evident that while the EDG players have achieved historical milestones, in terms of fan support and tradition, they are still trailing behind their arch-rivals RNG. This is despite the fact that the team did not perform exceptionally well in the latter half of the 2021 season.
