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Is There a Better System for Selecting the Third Seed Teams that Qualify for Worlds?

TBakes·9/6/2016, 6:07:51 PM·2 votes·1,094 views

I have been thinking lately about the reasoning behind how teams are selected to Worlds (as everyone is at this time of the year). Why do NA, EU, LCK, and LPL get 3 teams each, LMS gets 2, and IWC gets 2 from separate regions? Is this really the best way to select the top 16 teams in the world? Why do we include IWC when there are arguably better teams from other regions? Why do each of the four major regions get 3 teams each automatically? I'm not saying this should all change necessarily, but it seems kind of arbitrary to pick teams this way. I agree there should be auto-qualifying teams. There should be incentives for every team to try their best for both Splits. But how could we produce a system that will allow the best teams to face off against each other?

I am guessing it has to do with micro-metas which develop within each region throughout the year. How do we effectively compare NA's top teams with LCK's top teams when they have different variances in their playstyles and metas that develop independently of each other? I can understand this argument for deciding that there should be a selected amount of teams from each region. But why 3 from each, and not 2 or 4 or 5? Why does LMS only get 2 while the rest get 3 and why do we even include IWC?

Assuming the current distribution of teams is okay, why do we have the Regional Qualifiers set up as they are now? Could there be a way for the top 2 seeds from each region to be selected as they are now, but then have additional teams qualify for a Worlds Qualifier tournament of a sort? For example, the top 2 teams (Championship Points-wise) from each participating region (NA, EU, LCK, LPL, LMS) and the top 2 IWC teams (from the IWCQ) get to have their own tournament to determine who the remaining 6 teams are, regardless of region. Sure, this may give a higher probability to certain regions to win Worlds, but shouldn't we reward regions for being stronger?

If it had happened that way this year, this Qualifying Tournament would include: Cloud9, Immortals, Splyce, Fnatic, Samsung Galaxy, KT Rolster, I May, Team WE, J Team, Machi, INTZ, and Albus Nox Luna. These 12 teams would battle for the final 6 slots. Maybe IWC teams would not make it. Maybe they would displace two other teams from making it. Maybe China would send 4 total teams to Worlds and Korea only send 2. Would this be more fair? Would this allow the World Championship to truly represent the best teams in the world? I think so. If C9 and IMT are better than Samsung and I May, then they should both get to go. If the LMS has a third strong team in their region that could beat the third and fourth seeds from Europe, then they should get to send a third team.

But, it all depends on the goals of the World Chamionship. Of course, we cannot take the results of the Spring and Summer Splits and throw them out the window. Otherwise, teams might not try to win or place well because they can just play at the qualifying tournament and go to Worlds. so, we would have to maintain certain auto-qualifiers like we currently have (first place Summer Split, first place Championship Points).

What do you guys think? Is the current system most fair? Do you have a different idea to determine who goes to Worlds? Do you like my idea or maybe have an edit that would make my idea better?

8 Comments

Rubbery Skrub9/6/2016, 6:20:11 PM2 votes

It's really a logistics thing, qualifiers have to be blocked by region or else it would make for a nightmare in terms of planning. I think if they really wanted to distribute in terms of skill, though, China and Korea would get an extra team, whereas between EU and NA, they should really only get 4 or 5 teams.

Stillname9/7/2016, 12:50:20 AM2 votes

A lot of what you are talking about is either the way the old system was or redundant it seems.

Why send teams to a international qualifying tournament? Why not just send them to worlds?

The groups stage is already a sort of qualifying tournament if you want to look at it that way AND the top team from each region used to get a free pass into the actual elimination part but it turns out that people didn't like when the best team from their region and favorite team only played one match if they lost. For example in season 3 C9 faced Fanatic and lost 2-1 in their first game at worlds as well as the Gama Bears from LMS (if I remember correctly) got matched vs skt in the first game of elimination tournament and barely got to play as well. (2-0 series were just Bo3)

To reiterate my point though if you want worlds to be a qualifying tournament to get into just picture the groups stage as the qualifier and the knockout stage as the actual tournament.

The only thing the current system does not do is determine that every team going is really one of the best 16 teams in the world but to that there is the question. How many Korean teams get to go? They have been the best region for 3 years and there is no way of knowing if the 8th best Korean team is better than the 2nd best EU team unless they play head to head but that would require another tournament between a lot more teams to figure out.

However, the ultimate goal of worlds should be to find "The best team" and it is hard to argue that a team that doesn't make it in under the current system is it. It would be possible to just take the winner from each region and pit them up against each other just like in MSI and call it a day but that tournament doesn't sound nearly as exciting as 16 teams.

Also going to make a note that the reason LMS only gets 2 teams is because they are the smallest region playerbase wise, but I'm sure Riot has considered bumping them up to 3 slots.

Finally about the IWC teams. There definitely needs to be a way for teams that aren't from one of the major regions to get into the tournament. The past few years they have stolen a game off of a major team Season 4's Kaboom stealing a game off of Alliance being the big one. It also helps the smaller regions grow their scene, which is a pretty big deal for them being relevant in the future.

xJLx MCHammer9/7/2016, 1:43:59 AM1 votes

I perfer what they have now, especially the gauntlet. My bigger problem is how the points at distributed.

I still believe they should have one split summer and spring to make it more linare. The first two team seats while the last 5 teams go through gauntlets