Thumbnail image courtesy of Riot
The 2016 Mid-Season Invitational is the first major international event in China since 2013’s All-Star Game, and features six regional champions.
The group stage will run from May 4-8. It will be a double-round robin format. The playoffs will be a best-of-five, single-elimination bracket, held on May 13-15.
The teams qualified are:
- Europe (EU LCS) - G2 Esports
- North America (NA LCS) - Counter Logic Gaming
- Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau (LMS) - Flash Wolves
- Korea (LCK) - SKTelecom T1
- China (LPL) - Royal Never Give Up
- International Wildcard Invitational (IWC) - SuperMassive
Bracket Stage
- MSI Semifinals Infographic: Royal Never Give Up vs. SK Telecom T1
- MSI Semifinals Infographic: Counter Logic Gaming vs. Flash Wolves
- SKT’s kkOma: Bengi ‘could see play at any time’
- Take the gamble: The Flash Wolves' identity
Day 2
- NL on the Flash Wolves: 'We've really discovered a lot of small issues with our team'
- Phreak breaks down MSI: 'Everyone was kind of right to keep being afraid of the Koreans'
Day 1
- SKT beat RNG 3-1, advance to MSI Grand Finals
- Highlight: Bang closes out RNG with a bang
- Faker on the upcoming FW vs. CLG series: 'Both teams have different styles...I think the odds are 50/50'
- The Wolf and the Unicorn: inside SKT's NA support meta picks
- Sjokz predicts MSI's Grand Final and weighs in on the EU LCS's shifting landscape
Group Stage
The Brutality of Hubris: Royal Never Give Up's success and G2 Esports' failure
The bait and the safe bet: Why Royal will triumph over SKT
In-depth with: Impact discusses the highs and lows of his lone season with NRG eSports
A Life Less Ordinary: SK Telecom T1's 2016 MSI Woes
Day 5
- Zikz: 'I do feel like this roster is probably...the best iteration of [CLG] that has ever existed'
- Top 5 Plays from the 2016 Mid-Season Invitational Group Stage
- Xiaohu on SK Telecom T1's strengths and the silver lining in RNG's loss to CLG
- G2 eliminated from bracket stage contention at MSI
- A SuperMassive Statement on Wildcard Teams
- RNG to face SKT, CLG play FW at MSI Bracket Stage
Day 4
- Darshan: 'This experience is going to make us come back to North America as such a stronger team'
- Karsa on playing outside the LMS: 'There is a big possibility next year'
- Bang on SKT's losses: 'It’s absolutely not the case that it’s Blank's fault'
- Atlus on the MSI teamfight meta and why what's happening to SKT is 'very similar to the movie 300'
- May those who defy their fate receive glory: the MSI 2016 group stages
- SuperMassive eliminated from bracket stage contention at MSI
- Highlight: RNG traps CLG with Parallel Convergence
Day 3
- Highlight: G2 defeats SuperMassive with an Ace
- A Question of "The Jungle," bengi's absence at MSI
- Maple on getting over international nerves: 'This time I’m more mentally prepared'
- Stixxay: 'I don't really care if they ban [Caitlyn]...I'll just play whatever else and still pop off'
- Dumbledoge: If the enemy team play around and shut down Faker, 'then SKT have no chance'
- Royal Never Give Up on the razor's edge
Day 2
- Highlight: RNG defeats SKT with a Wuxx Triple Kill
- Highlight: CLG crushes G2 with a perfect Ace
- Naru on the Turkish scene: 'Maybe not this year, but next year we can compete [with] the top five EU'
- SwordArT on FW's Day 2 play: 'We even sang songs during the game. It was a really good atmosphere'
- Mata on RNG: 'I think learning about ourselves and improving our skills is a primary focus'
- A Bullet and a Target: SK Telecom's 0-2 Day 2
Day 1
- Know Thyself: CLG's MSI Mid Lane Control
- Highlight: aphromoo refuses to die
- Dumbledoge: 'Of course I feel like people are underestimating us but we have nothing to lose'
- Looper: 'Originally, I was going to retire after the contract with [Masters 3] ended'
- Faker: '[G2 was]....having fun with the game so I also decided to have some fun with my item build'
- aphromoo on MSI: 'All the supports here know how to hit the go button...in NA, not so much'
- PerkZ on G2's lack of MSI prep: 'We decided...taking that vacation would be maybe better for us'
- Steak evaluates the LMS: 'If you count the whole region, I think we might not even be better than wildcard'
Pre-Event
Previews
- Jungle is the New Mid: Tracking Faker's role on SK Telecom T1
- Dexter: Who will matter most at MSI?
- The Top 15 Players at MSI
- Infographic: Key Champions at MSI
- The Least Strict Coach: A conversation with G2's YoungBuck
- Mid-Season Invitational Staff Picks: The contest for second
Team Previews
- MSI Preview: Counter Logic Gaming's expectations
- MSI Preview: G2's late game leverage
- MSI Preview: The SK Telecom T1 Dynasty
- MSI Preview: The Flash Wolves' collision course
- MSI Preview: Into the SuperMassive
- MSI Preview: Royal's unsteady rise
Videos
- CLG Video Profiles: Beating the odds and the quest to repeat as NA LCS champions
- WildTurtle predicts MSI and weighs in on CLG representing NA
- PerkZ on MSI: 'I don’t think Asian mid laners are better than European ones'
- Santorin on the teams attending MSI, his favorite junglers and who will win it all
