North America’s 100 Thieves pulled off the first major upset of the 2025 League of Legends World Championship, defeating China’s number one seed Bilibili Gaming in the Swiss Stage opening round.
The best-of-one victory sends 100T to the 1-0 bracket while BLG drops to 0-1, a shocking start for one of the tournament favorites.
The game turned in top lane early. BLG’s star top laner Bin picked Rek’Sai, a high-risk early skirmisher, into Dhokla’s Sion. Bin repeatedly overextended and misplayed, including a failed tower dive that handed Dhokla a solo kill and an early lead.
That solo kill set the tone. Dhokla stabilized on the low-resource tank and became an unkillable frontline for 100T’s mid-game teamfights.
Mid lane told an even bigger story. Quid outplayed Knight across multiple skirmishes, with Dhokla even diving mid to help secure kills. Knight is widely considered one of the best mid laners in the world, making Quid’s performance a genuine statement game.
Bot lane saw FBI’s Ziggs completely neutralize BLG’s win condition. Elk played Caitlyn, a champion that thrives on early siege pressure and tower plates. Ziggs counters that gameplan entirely with superior waveclear and poke, preventing BLG from establishing bot-side control.
BLG’s draft issues extended to jungle and support. Beichuan started on Jarvan IV but couldn’t find effective early ganks or invades. Late in the game, he died alone at raptors past the 28-minute mark, highlighting BLG’s complete loss of map control.
Support ON picked Elise, a niche execution-heavy pick. Without successful catches, the pick offered little mid-game impact. 100T punished every engagement attempt.
100 Thieves closed the game decisively around 28 minutes after snowballing their lane leads into clean objective control and teamfight execution.
The NA squad features veteran talent with international pedigree. FBI previously reached Worlds 2023 quarterfinals with NRG. Jungler River has multiple Worlds and MSI appearances, including a strong run with PSG Talon. Dhokla was also part of that NRG quarterfinals roster.
Quid developed in the T1 system before joining NA. His performance against Knight marks a potential breakout moment on the world stage.
BLG entered Worlds as favorites after dominating the LPL. The roster features elite carries in Bin, Knight, and Elk. They’ve been a consistent title contender and recent international finalist.
The team used a jungle platoon domestically, rotating between Beichuan and Shad0w. Community scrutiny now centers on whether BLG will swap to Shad0w for their next match. Teams can substitute between Swiss rounds, making BLG’s next lineup decision critical.
What’s next in the Swiss Stage
The Swiss format seeds teams by record after each round. 100 Thieves will face another 1-0 team next. BLG drops to the 0-1 pool and must battle another team seeking their first win.
Teams need three wins to advance to the knockout stage. Three losses means elimination. With best-of-one games in early rounds, every match carries weight.
100T’s upset victory reshapes expectations for NA’s performance in China. The clean execution against an LPL powerhouse suggests they’re more than just regional representatives filling bracket space.
