FunPlus Phoenix swept challengers G2 Esports aside 3-0 in the finals of the League of Legends World Championships on Sunday, becoming the second Chinese team in a row to lift the Summoner’s Cup.
G2 had been widely fancied going into the Worlds finals, but were brushed aside by a confident FPX team, who beat last year’s champions Invictus Gaming in the previous weekend’s semi-finals.
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Chinese teams looking to make it three championships in a row next year will have home advantage: after the finals concluded, it was announced that 2020’s LoL Worlds will be held in Shanghai.
We will see you next year in Shanghai for the 2020 World Championship Finals! #Worlds2020 pic.twitter.com/lLTTKIWIz6
— LoL Esports (@lolesports) November 10, 2019
FunPlus were relative outsiders at the beginning of this tournament. Founded just two years ago in Beijing, they’ve grown to become one of China’s most prominent teams at a time when esports is taking off in a big way in the country. Yet few expected them to make it to the LoL finals, let alone lift the trophy.
RAISE THAT TROPHY, @FPX_Esports! #Worlds2019 pic.twitter.com/D0psM2X2aL
— LoL Esports (@lolesports) November 10, 2019
The win, plus the announcement that next year’s finals will be held in Shanghai, will only serve to heighten the popularity of LoL in China, where significant steps are being taken to professionalize competitive gaming.
