The 2019 League of Legends World Championship has found its first Grand Finalist. LPL rivals FunPlus Phoenix and Invictus Gaming met in the first semi-final after defeating Fnatic and Griffin, respectively.
Invictus Gaming AD carry Yu "JackeyLove" Wen-Bo kicked off game one by securing first blood around seven minutes. The game swayed in iG’s direction as they found themselves up five kills to FPX's two. FunPlus Phoenix stole back the momentum as star mid laner Kim "Doinb" Tae-sang found three kills. Turrets continued to fall as FPX pushed forward, Invictus managing one more kill as the gold deficit grew. A final team fight saw FunPlus Phoenix take the four kills they needed to close out the game at 28 minutes.
Game two saw FunPlus Phoenix race to an early lead, the gold swelling in their favor as they stood eleven kills to four. A massive team fight came as each side moved towards the Baron, JackeyLove securing a triple kill to gain the space his team needed. The momentum shifted, Invictus using the Baron to move towards the base. They pushed for the Nexus, destroying one turret before FPX fought them off. The next Baron spawned, FPX circling as iG made the push. Invictus took five kills in the ensuing fight, while FPX found the four they needed to keep iG away. FunPlus Phoenix managed to take down the second Baron as they secured five kills of their own. The game swayed back-and-forth, the final team fight going in iG's favor as they finally closed out the game at 42 minutes.
Game three started close, first blood being drawn at ten minutes as a team fight allowed each side to trade three kills. Gold leads remained minimal as Invictus stood with three turrets destroyed, FPX with two. Team fights favored FPX, and they were able to take down the Baron as they eased past Invictus. The future looked bleak for iG as FPX pushed towards the base, their gold lead growing. FPX continued forward, barely allowing their opponents to fight back as they claimed the win at 25 minutes.
FunPlus Phoenix took another early lead in game four as jungler Gao "Tian" Tian-Liang quickly took first blood. FPX found themselves up twelve kills to iG’s five as the first two team fights went their way. The momentum shifted in iG’s direction as they took control of the map, JackeyLove and top laner Kang "TheShy" Seun-kok securing nine kills to grant iG the Baron. Invictus took the gold lead, the momentum only shifting back when FPX took a Baron of their own. Invictus were out-classed as another team fight saw FPX gain ground on the base. FunPlus Phoenix ended the match at 34 minutes, eliminating the reigning world champions and locking in their Grand Final spot.
FunPlus Phoenix will face off against the winner of G2 and SK Telecom T1 in the League of Legends 2019 World Championship Grand Final. The Final will take place on November 10th in Paris, France.