It has been a tumultuous last six months for the team now known as Rainbow7. They were previously known as Lyon Gaming. However, they were forced to change their name after Riot announced that the organization did not legally own the Lyon Gaming name or logo. The team was fined by Riot for this violation. Even with a new name, they have continued to dominate the LLN. They are the favorite to win Group A.
Odds to win MSI Group A (Courtesy of BetDSI)
Rainbow7 -160
Gambit eSports +250
Kaos Latin Gamers +650
Ascension Gaming +1250
Backstory
No team has ruled a region quite like Rainbow7 has ruled the LLN. Since the team’s founding back in 2013, they have won all 10 LLN titles in which they have participated. Their stranglehold on the region has continued after the name change.
Rainbow7 swept Gaming Gaming in the semifinals and defeated Infinity eSports CR 3-1 in the finals to make it to this stage. For once, they did struggle a bit in the final though. It looked like Infinity had a decent chance to knock them out after winning the first game, but Rainbow7 rallied to win the next three and claim the spot at MSI.
What to watch for
For the first time all year, Rainbow7 will have their regular AD Carry at MSI. WhiteLotus was suspended by Riot for six months back in November 2017 due to a pattern of toxic behavior. He had been the team’s AD Carry for the previous three splits, and they had some trouble finding a replacement in his absence.
After both MarioMe and Manu failed to perform well in the role, the team turned to Zeicro. The veteran AD Carry played well and was the starter for Rainbow7’s playoff games. However, he will not be joining the team in Berlin.
Despite not playing a competitive game with his team yet this season, WhiteLotus is set to be the starting AD Carry for Rainbow7 once more. He has been practicing with the team throughout the year in anticipation for this, and he will look to lead them to victory in Group A. Just in case he stumbles, the team is bringing along Manu as it’s one substitute.
Hoy se gana free pic.twitter.com/ZiRuZ6hyMC
— Matias Musso (@Whitelotuslol) April 21, 2018
Over the years, the constant for this organization has been Seiya. Seiya has been the team’s mid laner since its founding over five years ago, and he has been heralded as the key to its success.
Seiya is widely seen as the best player in the LLN. He has an extraordinarily deep champion pool, and he has been fantastic on Azir this season. Expect other teams to ban that champion away from him at MSI.
Prediction
The one thing that Rainbow7 doesn’t lack is experience. As the perennial champions of the LLN, they continue to qualify for both MSI and the World Championships. That has given them the opportunity to play against some of the best teams in the world. The other teams in Group A don’t have that benefit, and that will be the reason Rainbow7 finishes atop the group.
