After one more up-and-down yr within the LEC, probably the most beloved franchises within the European League of Legends scene may be going by an enormous overhaul this offseason.
MAD Lions’ senior director of workforce operations Until Werdermann introduced at this time that all the division has been given the go-ahead to discover their choices for subsequent yr after their latest exit from the 2023 World Championship. He did, nonetheless, preserve that they “should still discover that our greatest choices are one another.”
Nearly each participant on the roster remains to be signed by this yr, with the one exception being star jungler Elyoya, whose contract will expire on the finish of November, in line with the League global contract database. In the meantime, Nisqy and Hylissang have their contracts expiring subsequent yr, whereas Chasy and Carzzy are signed on till 2025.
There are, nonetheless, droves of fans who consider this iteration of the workforce has run its course, particularly after struggling early exits at each the 2023 Mid-Season Invitational and Worlds 2023. They solely managed to win one recreation between each occasions this yr however received one LEC championship by a miracle run within the spring that noticed them go from eighth within the common season to first within the playoffs.
With a lot veteran firepower, many individuals anticipated MAD to be a real title contender this previous yr, however as a substitute, they have been far too unpredictable past the 2023 Winter Break up. After their run by the 2023 Spring Break up, the summer season warmth was an excessive amount of for this roster to bear.
They completed in seventh place for each the common season and playoffs in the summertime and have been ultimately ousted by Fnatic in the course of the Season Finals. At Worlds, MAD Lions ended up as one of many weakest-looking main area groups, ending with solely a single win by the Swiss stage—and the victory even got here courtesy of fellow LEC reps, Staff BDS. They have been outclassed by virtually each different workforce they confronted, together with orgs like Cloud9, NRG Esports, and Weibo Gaming.
Wanting forward, MAD falling flat of expectations might imply a full divisional rebuild is in retailer for this common org. Plans are being drawn up for each the workforce, the gamers, and the workers, and extra information ought to proceed to drop as the remainder of the yr progresses.
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