LoL - Worlds 2025: Who will be the monkey to reach quarterfinals?

The League of Legends 2025 World Championship kicks off on Tuesday, October 14, with a Play-In match that will see either T1 or Invictus Gaming eliminated right from the start. Last year, a viral Reddit post jokingly claimed that if Worlds featured eight professional teams and eight actual monkeys from a zoo, one of the monkey teams would still make it to the Top 8 — a perfectly absurd illustration of how the current Swiss format often guarantees that at least one non-LCK or LPL team sneaks into playoffs.

Following the same logic, the three Korean representatives — Gen.G, Hanwha Life Esports, and KT Rolster — along with the three Chinese powerhouses — Bilibili Gaming, Top Esports, and Anyone’s Legend — and the winner of the Play-In match, are once again expected to claim seven of the eight available quarterfinal slots, assuming the draw plays out their way. That leaves just one spot for the rest of the world — the LEC, T1, LCP — to fight tooth and nail for. As Kacper "Inspired" Słoma told Sheep Esports last year, his team became "the chosen monkeys." Now, let’s find out which team has the best chance to claim that title in 2025.

FlyQuest returns as the West’s brightest hope to claim the elusive eighth playoff spot and repeat their breakthrough performance from Worlds 2024. Carrying the aura of a team capable of toppling giants, FlyQuest nearly shocked Gen.G last year in the quarterfinals and also pushed Bilibili Gaming to a nail-biting 3-2 series at MSI 2025. They have maintained the exact same core roster from last year, with the strategic addition of Gakgos as a substitute top laner.

At the heart of FlyQuest’s strength is jungler Inspired, who is widely regarded as the best jungler in the West and arguably at the peak of his career. Support Alan "Busio" Cwalina is also delivering his best year yet. With two titles already this year dominating the North and South American circuits, including a convincing 3-0 sweep of G2 Esports at MSI, FlyQuest stands as the undisputed leader of the West. They embody experience, synergy, and hunger — key traits needed to face the powerhouse teams from Korea and China once again.

CTBC Flying Oyster enters 2025 as perhaps the most dominant and versatile contender to earn the title of "Kings of all monkeys," outside the LCK and LPL. Although they may seem like cute little monkeys with their youth and victory dances, they are in reality nearly undefeated this year. Nearly undefeated this year with a single loss across all competitions, they boast three titles from three LCP splits and a six-man roster that offers strategic flexibility unmatched by most teams. This versatility provides them with a unique edge in adaptations and unexpected gameplay.

They carry the rare advantage of experience from major international tournaments like First Strike and MSI, having impressed all year by defeating top teams including Top Esports, Karmine Corp, and Team Liquid. At First Strike, they pushed T1 to the limit, going all the way to a grueling Game 5. Their youthful prodigy, 18-year-old Sai “HongQ” Ming-Hong, is poised to shock the world with his raw talent, eager to carve his name early in the history of Worlds, perhaps ultimately rivaling the Taiwanese legend Huang “Maple” Yi-Tang.

After rising steadily throughout 2025, G2 Esports remains a staple contender with a veteran core that continues to dominate the EMEA region. The trio of Sergen "BrokenBlade" Çelik, Rasmus "Caps" Winther, and Steven "Hans Sama" Liv have held sway over their roles in the LEC for three years, consistently pushing the limits of their regions. All three of them are now looking to erase the Swiss Stage curse that has repeatedly seen them face an early elimination.

This year, they bring in Rudy "Skewmond" Semaan, a rookie jungler whose creativity and aggression have impressed across Europe, earning him the MVP title in the latest LEC Summer Finals. While their new support, Labros "Labrov" Papoutsakis is less flashy than Mihael "Mikyx" Mehle, he offers the stability G2 needs. Plus, he just peaked in the Summer Split and placed himself as one of the very best supports in the league again. Their extensive main stage experience, including being 2019 Worlds finalists with Caps as the sole surviving member, fuels their ambitions to break through the wall of early Swiss Stage eliminations, finally—often against Bilibili Gaming—and make a deep run in 2025.