CBLOL, PCS, and VCS Approaching Grand Finals

The quest for the Summoners Cup picks up speed this weekend as the CBLOL, PCS, and VCS all have their Grand Finals this weekend, with each match having impacts on the Worlds 2023 landscape.

Four teams this week are competing for seeding in the Play-In stage, while the CBLOL teams will be competing for their region’s sole spot at the League of Legends 2023 World Championships.

LOUD vs. paiN Gaming

• When: Saturday, September 9th – 12 PM ET
• Odds: LOUD (-350) vs. paiN Gaming

The CBLOL final contains two of Brazil’s most historied esports organizations in paiN Gaming and LOUD. In the regular season, paiN Gaming did remarkably well, going 14-4 and taking the top seed going into playoffs. They looked like they were going to continue their domination after dominating INTZ in the opening round 3-0.

Unfortunately for them, they’d soon fall to LOUD in the Upper Bracket Final 0-3. In the Lower Bracket Final, paiN Gaming came back after being down 1-2 in an absolute thriller of a match against RED Canids.

LOUD entered the tournament as the 3rd seed after having a respectable regular season themselves, going 13-5. They got through the RED Canids in the opening round of the playoffs in a dominant 3-1 match. They dominated paiN Gaming even more, sweeping them 3-0.

They are well aware that paiN Gaming is out for revenge, and both teams are ready to show the world what Brazilian League of Legends is all about. With only the winner getting the chance to compete at Worlds 2023, this is my must-watch match of the week.

PSG Talon vs. CTBC Flying Oyster

• When: Saturday, September 9th – 5 AM ET
• Odds: PSG Talon (-800) vs. CTBC Flying Oyster (+475)

In the PCS, both PSG Talon and CTBC Flying Oyster are already qualified for Worlds 2023 and will be competing in the Grand Finals only for the title of PCS Champions and seeding at Worlds. PSG Talon has been the team to beat all season long. They ended the Group Stage with a 16-2 record, giving them the top spot in the Playoffs.

Their first match in playoffs went perfectly as they swept Deep Cross Gaming in a 3-0 match. They then went on to win a close 3-2 match against Beyond Gaming in the Upper Bracket Final to put themselves in the Grand Final.

CTBC Flying Oyster has been the PCS Cinderella team this year, ending the group stage with a 9-9 record and being seeded into the lower bracket due to ending the year in 5th in the standings.

They made a miracle run through the Lower Bracket, taking down Team Bliss 3-0, Deep Cross Gaming 3-1, Frank Esports 3-2, and Beyond Gaming 3-2 to clinch not just an appearance in the Grand Finals but the Worlds stage as well. They’ve been doubted this whole run. They don’t mind being the underdogs going into Saturday.

GAM Esports vs. Team Whales

• When: GAM Esports vs. Team Whales
• Odds: GAM Esports (-400) vs. Team Whales (+275)

The VCS Dusk Split Grand Finals sees the top two teams from the Group Stage battling it out. GAM Esports had a great Group Stage, ending 11-3 and in the top spot, while Team Whales was just a game behind them at 10-4, snagging the second seed. GAM Made a clean run through the Upper Bracket, taking down Saigon Buffalo and Team Secret.

Team Whales, on the other hand, had to take down CEREBUS Esports, Saigon Buffalo, and Team Secret in the Lower Bracket after losing their first match in the playoffs to Team Secret.