Twenty-nine minutes into game three, nobody expected a five-game series.
There had never been a five-game Worlds final. And now, a group of talented rookies and experienced veterans was down two games and 9,000 gold to the best League of Legends team ever.
SK Telecom T1 was on the verge of winning their third Worlds title in four years. They were confident as they moved to secure the championship-clinching Baron.
But then Samsung Galaxy showed incredible determination. They had nothing to lose.
No one thought they could beat SKT T1. No one thought they would even make it to Worlds. They finished an unremarkable fourth in Korea’s LCK in the Summer Split and didn’t qualify for the playoffs in the Spring Split.
But after defeating KT Rolster, who they had lost to 19 times in a row, in the regional qualifier, Samsung went on an impressive run at Worlds.
They easily won their group stage matches against Team SoloMid, Royal Never Give Up, and Splyce. They entered the finals on a 10-game winning streak after sweeping Cloud9 and H2K in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively.
With their back against the wall just before the 30-minute mark of game three, Samsung’s AD carry Jaehyeok “Ruler” Park prevented SKT T1’s ADC Junsik “Bang” Bae from joining his team at the Baron pit.
Ruler’s Ezreal took down Bang’s Jhin and SKT support Jaewan “Wolf” Lee’s Nami. He then hit SKT mid laner Sanghyeok “Faker” Lee with a Mystic Shot before fearlessly diving in to finish off Faker, who was known as the “unkillable demon king” due to his incredible dodging skills.
Samsung got three kills and then took the Baron. After forty-one minutes and many intense team fights, Samsung destroyed SKT T1’s nexus without ever regaining the gold lead.
Yes, the game lasted 71 minutes, just 14 seconds shy of the record for the longest Worlds match ever.
The casters calling the game perfectly captured the excitement we all felt while watching.
SKT T1 eventually defeated Samsung in game five to solidify their dynasty as the best team of all time. But that one fight turned what could have been the most boring Worlds final ever into the most thrilling.
The series was so incredible, we decided to compile the top moments from start to finish for your enjoyment. Here they are.
Faker lives
As we mentioned before, Faker is incredibly hard to kill.
Faker dies
Alright, he’s not actually unkillable, but it’s definitely not easy. Samsung mid laner Minho “Crown” Lee, playing Viktor, landed his spells on Faker and finished him off.
Bang shoots a blind man
Most of us panic when we have low health and an opponent jumps on us. But Bang is not like most of us. He carefully aimed and took down Lee Sin.
Bang, Bang
Let’s go back to Bang for one of the most hard-earned double kills you’ll ever see. Despite being behind, Bang managed to escape and defeat two enemies with low health.
CuVee’s great escape
Samsung top laner CuVee showed incredible skill and survival instincts as he dodged attacks and escaped with almost no health.
CuVee’s revenge
Minutes after his great escape, CuVee went on the offensive. He executed an impressive teleport flank and used his ultimate ability to turn the tide of a team fight.
Faker being Faker
In game two, Faker got to play Ryze for the first time since the champion was reworked. He used the SKT T1 Ryze skin he earned from winning Worlds last year.
It was a special moment for a legendary player.
Ambition steals game three
Even after the unexpected win at the Baron pit, Samsung still had to fight tooth and nail to recover. And they did. Ambition made an incredible steal that sealed their victory in game three.
The last nexus falls
By the time SKT T1 easily took down Samsung’s nexus in game five, the hard work was already done. It may not have been the most dramatic ending, but it was a historic moment worth remembering.
Samsung’s never-say-die moment
Without further ado, here’s the game three fight that turned what could have been the most boring Worlds final ever into the most exciting. Samsung deserves to be remembered as fierce competitors.
esports, League of Legends Worlds, SKT T1, Samsung Galaxy, Faker, CuVee, Bang, Ambition