The 2025 League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational (MSI 2025) kicked off with an intense Play-In Stage from June 27 to 29 at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, Canada. Featuring four competitive regions—EMEA’s G2 Esports, Americas’ FURIA, Asia-Pacific’s GAM Esports, and China’s Bilibili Gaming—the stage adopted a double-elimination bracket with best-of-five series, spotlighting high-stakes gameplay and elite-level coordination. Only two teams could secure passage to the main event, making every game a high-pressure showdown packed with pivotal moments.

Play-In Results & Bracket Overview

Match Results

  • June 27: G2 Esports edged out FURIA in a grueling 3–2 series, with FURIA pushing the European favorites to the brink before G2 found their form in a dominant final game.
  • June 28: Bilibili Gaming showed total control, sweeping GAM Esports 3–0 to advance to the upper bracket final.
  • June 28: GAM Esports staged a dramatic reverse sweep against FURIA (3–2), recovering from a 0–2 deficit in the lower bracket elimination match.
  • June 29: Bilibili Gaming overpowered G2 Esports with another clean 3–0 victory in the upper bracket final.
  • June 29: G2 Esports bounced back to claim the final qualifying spot, narrowly defeating GAM Esports 3–2 in the lower bracket final.
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Final Standings

  1. Bilibili Gaming (China): Advanced to the main event
  2. G2 Esports (EMEA): Advanced to the main event
  3. GAM Esports (Asia-Pacific): Eliminated
  4. FURIA (Americas): Eliminated

Team Performances & Player Highlights

  • Bilibili Gaming maintained an unblemished 6–0 record throughout the Play-In, showcasing exceptional macro play and synergy. The roster—Bin, Knight, Beichuan, Elk, and ON—demonstrated total control in teamfights and objectives. Support player ON led all players in KDA at 14.6, while Bin stood out with creative champion picks, including the new champion Ambessa.
  • G2 Esports faced back-to-back five-game series and thrived under pressure. Mid-laner Caps earned MVP-level recognition with consistent clutch performances, particularly during the series against GAM. BrokenBlade and Hans Sama also contributed decisively in teamfights and lane control.
  • GAM Esports and FURIA may have fallen short of advancing, but showed high-octane League of Legends. GAM’s jungler Levi delivered a standout performance with 11 kills in a single game, while FURIA’s top laner Guigo made headlines with a quadra-kill in a losing effort.

Unforgettable Highlights & Moments

  • G2 vs. FURIA: One of the most riveting series saw FURIA claiming an initial lead, threatening an upset over EMEA’s top seed. However, G2’s resilience saw them rally and take the final game in dominating fashion.
  • BLG’s Nexus Defense: During their upper bracket final match against G2, Bilibili Gaming pulled off a game-defining defense against a Nexus siege, stunning the crowd and securing the momentum for a 3–0 sweep.
  • GAM’s Reverse Sweep: GAM Esports brought the energy with an improbable reverse sweep over FURIA, turning a 0–2 start into a thrilling 3–2 comeback. Levi’s jungle control and tempo-setting were key throughout.
  • Additional standout moments included Guigo’s quadra-kill, Bin’s debut of the newly-released Ambessa, and Caps’ game-saving triple-kill against GAM in the lower bracket final.

Meta & Patch: Champion Diversity Defines Play-In

The Play-In Stage was contested on Patch 25.13, which introduced notable strategic shifts enhanced by the “Fearless Draft” format. Traditional picks like Renekton, Corki, Varus, and Sion remained meta staples, while adaptable teams found success with newcomers to priority lists, such as Kindred and Kha’Zix in the jungle. Teams like BLG and G2, known for flexible champion pools and draft creativity, maximized the patch’s strategic potential to outmaneuver opponents from champ select through to Nexus explosions.

Global Viewership & Fan Engagement Peaks

MSI 2025’s Play-In Stage not only delivered in competition but also attracted an impressive international audience. The adrenaline-fueled G2 vs. FURIA series drew the highest viewership, peaking at around 796,000 concurrent viewers. Strong viewership numbers and engagement spikes during close contests reaffirmed the global enthusiasm for high-stakes League of Legends and the anticipation for the MSI main event in Vancouver.

With Bilibili Gaming and G2 Esports securing their spots in the next stage, all eyes turn to the main MSI bracket, where the top teams from every major region await. For full coverage, brackets, and highlights, visit LoLEsports.

Source: MSI 2025 Play-In Stage as it Happened