With just two weeks remaining in the 2022 LEC Summer Split, European League of Legends teams are continuing to fight for a top-six spot that would put themselves in the playoffs. Yet for the top three teams, a different fight is underway—one that will determine who gets the coveted byes.

For MAD Lions, a victory today would bring them one step closer to cementing a spot in the Summer Split playoffs, making up for a Spring Split where they struggled to recreate the success they found just a year ago with two consecutive titles. While their hold on playoff qualifications remains strong, it was Rogue who found the upper hand in this game, ending a small losing streak that began a few weeks ago.

Armut struggled immensely in the laning phase to deal with Odoamne’s Gwen, a champion that Rogue had locked instantly as their first pick in the draft phase. This early deficit made it difficult for Rogue to secure pressure on the top side of the map and ultimately gave MAD few issues in rotating their entire team up when needing objectives.

Fortunately for Rogue, intense roam pressure from Malrang enabled Larssen and Comp to take control of their respective lanes and prevent MAD from taking control of a gold lead. Malrang stuck close by his mid laner as he continued to take over all of MAD’s lanes. The pair unleashed the Rift Herald in the top lane to take both towers and chunk the inhibitor turret.

MAD struggled to venture even into their own jungle with how much control of the map Rogue had attained. A Baron in MAD’s favor that handed them a large objective bounty seemed to be what they needed to jump back into the game, but Rogue were ready and willing to respond from a notable distance, allowing them to secure their ninth win of the split.

While Rogue have struggled to bounce back from their loss to G2 Esports in week five, this dominant victory appeared to be a complete rejuvenation for the team that has them readily prepared to contest the top of the LEC standings. Even when MAD had the potential to bring the game back in their favor with a Baron play, Rogue retained their composure and recognized how quickly they needed to react—a trait that kept Rogue steadfast on victory from the beginning of the game.

Rogue now jump to second place in the LEC, sharing a spot with Team Vitality, who defeated Team BDS handily earlier today. Though MAD remain in first place, they are now trailed close behind by these two teams, making the race for first in the Summer Split even more competitive in these last two weeks.

No teams have qualified yet for the Summer Split playoffs, as even teams at the bottom of the LEC standings have accrued enough victories to potentially change the course of the final weeks. Rogue will face SK tomorrow and MAD will face Misfits with an ensured spot in the playoffs on the line.