T1 Wins Over BLG; CFO Ousts KOI at MSI 2025

The 2025 Mid-Season Invitational witnessed T1’s Lee ‘Faker’ Sang-hyeok secure his 200^th international League of Legends victory, marked by a decisive 3-0 triumph over Bilibili Gaming (BLG), the runners-up from the 2024 World Championship.

Faker attained this notable achievement during the second series of the Bracket Stage, occurring after Movistar KOI‘s exit from the competition following their defeat by CTBC Flying Oyster (CFO).

T1 effectively took apart their adversary in the opening game, fueled by an exceptional showing from Faker on the champion Orianna. Despite sustained pressure exerted by BLG, T1’s Unkillable Demon King proved resilient, catching BLG off guard during crucial team engagements. Bolstered by a 22-8 kill score, Infernal Soul, and control of Baron Nashor, the LCK representative breached BLG’s base in under 27 minutes.

The second game initially favoured BLG, as the LPL team repeatedly eliminated Choi ‘Doran’ Hyeon-jun in isolation. While the remainder of T1 successfully mitigated a significant gold advantage for BLG, Faker strategically farmed, reaching pivotal power spikes on his Viktor, ultimately surpassing his opposing mid-laner by four levels. The tide of the game shifted dramatically when T1 secured the Atakhan, achieving soul point. Within 33 minutes and 36 seconds, Lee ‘Gumayusi’ Min-hyung’s Caitlyn aided his squad in concluding the game with an unofficial pentakill.

To prevent a fall into the lower MSI bracket, BLG chose a robust Ahri-Vi combination as a final attempt against T1. This instance suggested a potentially balanced game, with both teams exchanging kills and objectives. Nevertheless, T1 managed to accumulate dragons and eliminate the initial Baron amidst the turbulent skirmishes.

The maneuver proved to be a strategic lure, drawing BLG toward the Baron pit and enabling Doran to execute a backstab on the LPL team. With BLG eliminated once again, their nexus became undefended after 33 minutes and 30 seconds.

Leading up to the T1 demonstration, spectators witnessed a battle for survival between CFO and Movistar KOI (MKOI), the top-seeded teams from the LPC and LEC.

The inaugural game unfolded as a somewhat prolonged series. Across more than 38 minutes, CFO maintained control, benefiting from a strong Sion-Azir draft and successful engagements during the early stages. Although MKOI held their ground with evenly distributed drakes, the opponent’s increasingly substantial gold lead eventually became insurmountable.

In the subsequent game, CFO continued its dominance over the remaining EMEA representative at MSI. Once more, the LPL team restricted their adversary, utilizing superior macro play to establish a significant lead in gold and floral resources. Capitalizing on impactful initiations from Ling ‘Kaiwing’ Kai-wingon Bart, CFO reached match point at 33 minutes and 29 seconds.

Facing elimination from the tournament, MKOI ventured on an unorthodox Irelia selection, aiming for a favourable top-lane matchup against Yorick. Conversely, CFO opted for a draft effective against champions positioned in side-lanes. However, MKOI’s side-lanes exhibited their best early-game performance throughout the series. A fed Irelia and Xayah enabled the team to accumulate kills across the map, preventing a 0-3 sweep in under 28 minutes.

CFO concluded the series with another patient demonstration of careful farming and scaling. As the LCP team spent its early and mid-game managing resources across the map, MKOI gained little from initiating dives and skirmishes. The team’s Kalista also fell behind the opposing Aphelios early. The bot laner Chiu ‘Doggo’ Tzu-chuan delivered an impressive 7/1/2 performance to help CFO remain in the lower bracket.

Following Saturday’s matches, winners CFO and T1 are scheduled to confront Anyone’s Legend (June 9th) and Gen.G Esports (June 10th), respectively. However, prior to these matchups, MSI 2025 is set to proceed on June 8th at 1 am BST with an elimination series featuring LTA’s FlyQuest versus BLG.

Enthusiasts can observe the contest for survival through the authorized Twitch and YouTube channels, as well as collaborating co-streamers.