The qualified teams : GK and DSYRE
The 3-0 matches saw very different teams facing off for a direct qualification spot into the top 16. Both matches have given us a back-and-forth 3 games banger with two teams obtaining their tickets : Geekay Esports and DSYRE.
The first name is not a big surprise, being the #1 seed of the ever-reinforcing Arabian league and semi-finalist of the Spring EMEA Masters edition, Geekay Esports were among the favourites to grab a 4-0 qualification. In the trail of an excellent Ahmad "Giyuu" Charif in the midlane and with an excellent coordination during teamfights, GK were able to defeat Vitality.Bee.
Game 1 is likely to haunt VIT's players' dreams this night as the LEC academy held the game for most of its part until a mismanaged elder fight who saw Han "Leo" Gyeo-re and Cho "Bong" Bo-woong, the two koreans of GK, carry their team to a first win in the bo3. After a game 3 where Giyuu's Yasuo dismantled on his own the whole VIT draft, GK set themselves into the top 16
The other team present in the top 16 is however a huge surprise, as DSYRE are "only" the Italian #2 seed. However, after a K'sante masterclass from Panagiotis "Empyros" Tantis in the game 2, Dsyre were able to surf on Seo "SlowQ" Ye-bit and Dominik Pawel "Zamulek" Biela teamfight prowess to take the victory over turkish #2 seed Dark Passage.
Full of experienced players who went under the radar for the 2024 season, Dsyre proves that Italian League of Legends is to be respected even when Macko Esport struggles, with 4 statement games as they had, Dsyre can legitimately be considered as among the names that can win the trophy.
The eliminated teams : EGN and CZV
Portugueuse #2 seed and recurrent EMEA Masters participant EGN Esports were there first to be eliminated after a streak of 4 defeats. The LPLOL wasp couldn't beat their countrymen GTZ Esports who repeated their success of the regular season with an easy 2-0 over a weaker opponent.
It is not a surprise to see EGN taking the exit door so quickly as LPLOL has consistently been among the weakest ERLs in EMEA Masters. Bringing veteran jungler Danil "Diamondprox" Reshetnikov was not enough for a team that both lacked the individual skill and the team knowledge to prove it deserved a place further in the swiss stage
Seeing Diamondprox playing at these EMEA Masters certainly was fun, but not enough for EGN to be relevant
The other elimination bo3 saw a much closer fight between two representatives of the smaller ERL regions. Benelux' only hope MCON Esports were facing Balkans main brand Crvena Zvezda, and so far, hope remains as MCON won a cliffhanger 2-1 serie over EBL #1 seed.
For Crvena Zvezda, this defeat seals a disappointing EMEA Masters run, being outclassed by Partizan esports, EBL #2 seed, is a thing, but not winning any match is another. Nethertheless, the belgradian organization had not reached the EMEA since 2022, so the failure is to be nuanced.
