by Day four of the League of Legends World Championship has come to a close, marking the halfway point of the group stage.
There are still 24 fixtures left to be played before the top eight teams fly to Spain, where they will measure against each other in the playoffs.
Unlike the first half of the group stage, the second half will be divided into four days, each dedicated to one group and the remaining six fixtures:
Group B – Thursday, October 17
Group A – Friday, October 18
Group C – Saturday, October 19
Group D – Sunday, October 20
This LoL betting preview will look over Thursday’s fixtures, featuring FunPlus Phoenix, GAM Esports, Splyce and J Team.
GAM Esports vs FunPlus Phoenix
Thursday, October 17 – 15:00 CEST
The meeting between GAM Esports (+468) and FunPlus Phoenix (-666.67) will be the rematch of the Tuesday’s fixture where the Chinese giants defeated GAM in a dominant fashion.
FPX entered that fixture with all guns blazing and needed just over 23 minutes to close out the match and walk away with the second win of the group stage.
It was a completely one-sided affair and if we take into account what they showed on that day, we don’t believe GAM Esports have a chance to turn this one around.
FunPlus Phoenix to win – -666.67 at BetOnline
J Team vs Splyce
Thursday, October 17 – 16:00 CEST
Splyce (-111.11) suffered a painful defeat against J Team (-107.53) on Tuesday when they produced one of their worst performances this tournament.
There are arguments to be made J Team played well, but we feel like it was more Splyce’s poor showing that contributed to the final result.
If we were to point fingers it should be Marek “Humanoid” Brázda and Kasper “Kobbe” Kobberup, both of whom severely underperformed. Humanoid was simply not himself, whereas Kobbe looked very lost and too passive in most of the team fights.
That being said, Splyce are known to perform much better when they are seen as underdogs. And with that in mind, we will trust them to avenge their defeat this Thursday and derail J Team.
Splyce to win – -111.11 at BetOnline
GAM Esports vs J Team
Thursday, October 17 – 17:00 CEST
The first meeting between these two sides produced an exciting fixture that highlighted how deadly GAM (+130) can be.
Much like GAM, J Team (-156.25) need to have good early game to get their wheels spinning, making us believe this fixture can go either way.
And with that in mind, we will gladly side with the underdogs given they have already shown they know how to defeat J Team.
GAM Esports to win – +130 at BetOnline
Splyce vs FunPlus Phoenix
Thursday, October 17 – 17:00 CEST
On paper, FPX (-454.55) should win this one with relative ease; however, we don’t believe the LPL champs have found their true form yet.
The same could be said for Splyce (+341), whose star players have failed to impress thus far. That being said, we don’t believe this one will be a walkover for FPX.
Neither side will risk a lot here, especially considering how tight Group B is. With that in mind, we expect a slow and calculated approach from both teams, resulting in a slightly longer match.
Map time over 33 minutes – -142.86 at BetOnline
Splyce vs GAM Esports
Thursday, October 17 – 19:00 CEST
The first meeting between these two ended in a dominant win for Splyce (-172.41), who are expected to produce another clean win this Thursday.
While Splyce looked very iffy in their performances against J Team and FPX, they are still far superior to GAM (+143) in all aspects of the game.
While GAM have very attractive odds and could produce an upset win if Splyce choke once more, we don’t feel comfortable betting against the home side.
Splyce to win – -172.41 at BetOnline
FunPlus Phoenix vs J Team
Thursday, October 17 – 20:00 CEST
The last fixture of the day will see J Team (+350) clashing with FunPlus Phoenix (-625), hoping they can make the Chinese giants bleed once more.
FPX looked rough in the first round-robin fixtures, but they are still a much better side than J Team and should win this match nine times out of 10.
This fixture will most likely be the one that decides which of the two sides will end up as the top seed in Group B.
FunPlus Phoenix to win – -625 at BetOnline
