We've all heard the standard predictions. Everyone's on the LPL and DWG KIA trains (except those who are in Chovy Church). You've heard all the usual takes about how the East will shine and LCS will not make it out of groups (again). 

So today, in this article, the Inven Global team got together for the sole purpose of coming up — and defending — their own Bold and Spicy™ predictions. 

Are they likely to happen? Not much. Will they make Worlds way more exciting to watch? You know it!

Here's Inven Global's seven bold predictions for the 2021 LoL World Championship.

All three LEC teams will be eliminated in the Group Stage — Nick Geracie

The LEC has continued to widen the gap between itself and the LCS in terms of game quality over the past few years. But while the gap may not have narrowed in 2021, it doesn’t look to have widened much either. Rogue will have virtually zero chance of escaping Group A with FunPlus Phoenix and DWG KIA in it, and Fnatic’s breakneck aggression will not outpace teams like Royal Never Give Up and PSG Talon the way it did G2 Esports and Rogue. 

There’s no doubt that MAD Lions is the best western team at the tournament, and without a doubt, the most likely to make it out of the Group Stage. However, MAD was a shadow of its MSI form multiple times throughout the LEC Summer Split. Should the younger MAD players be rattled like they were at last year’s World Championship, especially in a group stacked with veterans on Team Liquid and Gen.G, the possibility of the LEC finishing outside of the top 8 for the first time since the 2014 World Championship becomes far more likely.

"Chovy Life Esports" will make at least semifinals — Daniel "Quest" Kwon

Hanwha Life Esports have proven themselves during the qualifiers that they’re not just "Chovy Life Esports". However, the fact remains that Jeong "Chovy" Ji-hoon is their biggest win condition because the level he plays at far exceeds that of any other mid laner in this year’s Worlds. One wrong move against Chovy and he will find a way to punish you. From his jaw-dropping ability to control the waves in lane to his mechanical prowess in skirmishes and teamfights, he always finds a way to be multiple steps ahead. If HLE is able to continue performing as well as they did in the qualifiers, I believe that they can definitely make it to the semifinals.

Worlds 2021 finals will be T1 vs. DWG KIA — David "Viion" Jang

The Worlds 2021 finals will be a rerun of the 2021 LCK Summer Split finals with DWG KIA vs. T1. Defending champions DWG KIA will smash any teams that come their way while T1 will manage to get through tough teams when it comes to best-of series. The only teams that have ever eliminated T1 from Worlds were Samsung Galaxy (now Gen.G) and G2 Esports, and G2 isn’t here. More than anything, who doesn't want to see Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok in the finals again?

⛔ Rogue will make top 8 — John "OddBall" Popko (Failed)

After their meltdown in the LEC Summer Playoffs, many have dismissed Rogue as a top team. It’s understandable — after leading the league throughout all of Summer, getting swept by the second-place team was not a good look.

But think about it. Just remember how incredible they looked before playoffs. Steven "Hans sama" Liv and Adrian "Trymbi" Trybus came into their own as an elite bot lane. Andrei "Odoamne" Pascu was once again an excellent and consistent rock in the top lane. And Kacper "Inspired" Słoma looked like one of the best junglers in the world.

On paper, this lineup from a pure talent perspective should be capable of making some noise at Worlds. No doubt Rogue has been spending this break trying to address their issues and if they get a good momentum running by taking an upset win or two, they might just drive it straight out of the group of hell.

✅ DFM can be the dark horse of Worlds 2021 — Carver Fisher (Fullfilled)

Japan has never been a region with a big stake in the LoL scene. The LJL is relatively small, and we’ve never seen a Japanese team hit it big on the world stage. However, after an unexpected win against Cloud9 at MSI, DFM put themselves on the map as a force to be reckoned with. While this roster is mostly Korean, Mun "Steal" Geon-yeong has been together with DFM long enough to get residency as of Worlds 2021, which he didn't have for MSI, and why DFM had to sub in their coach, Kazuta "Kazu" Suzuki. And they still put up a good international performance, despite essentially being a man down.

Not to mention, Yuta "Yutapon" Sugiura has been a pro ADC since 2013. His veteran leadership combined with Shunsuke "Evi" Murase's teamfight top playstyle and a stacked team of Korean talent may be enough for DFM to make it to Groups — and beyond. Plus, DFM will get the chance to rematch C9 in Play-Ins. Considering how MSI went, that should be a matchup to watch.

⛔ PSG Talon will make semifinals — Josh Tyler (Failed)

The PCS’s #1 seed is being criminally underrated. Yes, they play in a weaker league, but this team went 18-0 in Summer and undefeated in the Playoffs to every team that wasn’t Beyond Gaming.

Let’s also not forget that PSG Talon was knocked out of MSI in the semifinals by the eventual champion Royal Never Give Up. They managed to take games off every team during the final group stage except for DWG KIA and they did so playing with a substitute bot laner.

Wong "Unified" Chun Kit is an absolute monster, posting a 12 KDA and over 470 GPM for the 2021 season. Both marks are among the best of any ADC attending Worlds 2021. With Unified back in the lineup, it’s not out of the question that PSG Talon could perform even better than they did at MSI.

Team Liquid will make their deepest Worlds run yet — André Gonzaléz Rodriguéz

As a team that only has had international success in the form of 2019’s MSI, this is the year for Team Liquid to finally make it out of groups at Worlds. In all of the years of Team Liquid becoming one of the LCS’ “dynasty teams”, all that the organization had to show for itself was multiple respectable 3-3 finishes. But that won’t be the case for this year’s Worlds.

Yes, they faltered later on in the Summer but looking at their performances this season in playoffs, it’s been solid as can be— they were the first-ever LCS Lock In champions, finished second place at MSS with a substitute, and finished second place again at the LCS Championship in summer. This Team Liquid has the talent from top to bottom, more so than in prior years and now that they’ve had time a full LCS season’s worth of play, it’s their time to show it off. 

Images by: Riot Games