LoL: BDS starts strong, SK Gaming dominates Fnatic on the final day of LEC Week 1

The first week of the LEC comes to an end with a surprising third day. Indeed, the last BO3 of the day saw Fnatic, an eternal favorite of the league with its roster full of veterans, get obliterated 0-2 by SK Gaming—a team that was widely expected to struggle the most due to its roster changes between splits. The previous series followed a more predictable outcome, with Team BDS securing a 2-1 victory against Rogue.

The Swiss organization made a strong debut, overcoming a tricky matchup against Rogue. Not everything is bleak for the team set to be acquired by NAVI. Today, Adam "Adam" Maanane faced more difficulties—having been ill for a week, as he mentioned on his X account, he didn’t look as dominant as in his first match against Team Heretics. Patrik "Patrik" Jírů had a strong performance on Ezreal, and Emil "Larssen" Larsson was generally better, but it wasn’t enough to take more than a single game off BDS, who capitalized heavily on numerous individual mistakes. That said, BDS didn’t look overwhelmingly dominant either. Led by Doğukan "113" Balcı, who took on the in-game leader role as he often has throughout his career with his aggressive playstyle, he logically earned the series MVP title with a 13/4/20 scoreline.

With two roster changes, in the jungle and AD Carry positions, featuring the promotion of two top LFL players—Mehdi "Boukada" Lahlou and Tim "Keduii" Willers—expectations were low in this very first series for SK. It was expected that Fnatic, a powerhouse in the European League of Legends with a star-studded roster, to dominate their opponents. Especially considering Keduii, in his post-game interview with Eefje "Sjokz" Depoortere, admitted that their scrim winrate wasn't very high and that onstage nerves were a real factor for his first appearance at the LEC studio in Berlin. That didn’t stop them from pulling off a decisive 2-0 upset against Fnatic.

SK Gaming's strong performance was particularly highlighted by Boukada, who claimed the MVP title of the series after an excellent first game. However, if this BO3 revealed something, it's that Fnatic has some adjustments to make. Marek "Humanoid" Brázda was far below his usual level, struggling in both games and giving away many kills. Additionally, Fnatic's teamplay looked shaky, with several failed collective plays. On the bright side, they did bring out the first-ever Naafiri pick in LEC history, played by Iván "Razork" Martín in Game 1. While it's too early to draw definitive conclusions, this early setback has certainly given Fnatic a few lessons to learn.

The first weekend comes to an end without a clear leader, and the action resumes next Saturday at 14:00 CET with three BO3 matchups: Rogue vs. Team Vitality, Karmine Corp vs. BDS, and Team Heretics vs. G2 Esports.