With the 2019 LEC Spring finals, G2 Esports’ 3-0 rout over Origen gathered over 475,000 peak viewers during the finals matchup, according to Esports Charts. This season’s finals match was only the third most viewed in the region’s history, falling behind the Summer and Spring Splits in 2018.
The missing piece
While the LCS finals in North America reached nearly 600,000 viewers and became that region’s second most watched finals match, the LEC finals built up less hype than previous seasons. Perhaps the reason for this was the absence of Fnatic in the finals. The two most watched European finals matches both included Fnatic on stage.
In fact, while just over 475,000 viewers tuned in to the match between G2 and Origen for the championship, the second most viewed match of this split belongs to Fnatic’s 1-3 semifinal loss to Origen, which was watched by just over 450,000 individuals. Coming off a second place finish at the 2018 Worlds tournament, in which they lost 0-3 to Invictus Gaming, there were high expectations for Fnatic.
We will never forget 2018.
We will see you in 2019.
Little will ever compare to this journey.#worlds2018 pic.twitter.com/aZ1h86Ena8
— FNATIC (@FNATIC) November 3, 2018
Unfortunately for fans at the time, big roster changes were coming. Shortly after their World Championship finals appearance, two key players left Fnatic. Mid lane player Rasmus “Caps” Winther moved to G2, and Paul “sOAZ” Boyer moved to Misfits Gaming in November 2018. Even with these roster changes, Fnatic still pulled massive viewers during their matches this split.
G2’s stacked roster
Perhaps another reason why the G2 and Origen matchup didn’t gather a record number of views was G2’s dominant roster. The 2019 LEC Spring Split’s All-Pro team included three members of the G2 roster, as well as the season’s MVP, Caps. G2’s jungler, Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski, and their support, Mihael “Mikyx” Mehle, joined Caps on the All-Pro team.
Your 2019 #LEC Spring All-Pro-Team:
TOP: @CabochardLoL 🇫🇷
JGL: @G2Jankos 🇵🇱
MID: @G2Caps 🇩🇰
BOT: @kobbe 🇩🇰
SUP: @G2Mikyx 🇸🇮All the info here:https://t.co/UokAa60dpA
— LoL Esports (@lolesports) March 27, 2019
While Origen’s coach, André Guilhoto, was named Best Coach of the split, the individual performance of the G2 roster may have led many viewers to predict a decisive victory for G2. And in the end, G2 proved they were the best team on the LEC finals stage.
G2’s roster displayed their skill in the LEC finals, which included an 18-minute victory in the third game. The previous two games both ended within 30 minutes, and Origen never seemed in full control.
If you weren’t able to watch the LEC finals, we have posted a recap of the match. Unfortunately for Origen, watching a replay of the entire finals wouldn’t take you very long either!
Published: Apr 15, 2019 12:32 pm