Yesterday, we kicked off the lead-up to the League of Legends 2015 World Championships with some predictions about how Group A would shake out. Today, we’ll be looking at the next four teams competing.

Group B

As the only group lacking a Korean team, one’s first instinct might be to call this a weak group. However, that would be far from the truth.

Let’s start by taking a look at Fnatic. This is, without a doubt, the strongest European representative at Worlds in a long time. They didn’t drop a single game until the LCS finals, where they still managed to emerge victorious as EU’s #1 seed. This team has a legitimate carry threat in all three lanes, making it difficult for opponents to just focus on one part of the map. However, the LCS finals did expose some weaknesses, most notably Reignover’s less-than-stellar performances on carry junglers. If they keep him on a tank, the carry trio of Huni, Febiven and Rekkles are capable of stepping up, led by captain Yellowstar. If they deviate from that, or if they play too passively early on (a potential fatal flaw,) the team could run into some trouble.

Coming from the LMS is ahq eSports Club. While it’s usually easy for the casual fan to dismiss any team not from China, Korea, or LCS, that would be a grave mistake in this case. AHQ showed fine form at MSI, and has only grown as a team since then. They absolutely dominated their local competition, though it remains to be seen if that will translate against international competition. The roster change that moved Mountain to the jungle and Albis to support has served the team well, and they’re going to surprise people if they’re not taken seriously.

China’s Invictus Gaming may not be a perfect team, but they certainly appear to be a strong one. After not looking good for some time, top laner Zz1tai has really stepped up to be a true carry threat. KaKAO likely needs no introduction at this point, and is still considered to be one of the best junglers in the world. While other names may take the international spotlight, Rookie is a true superstar in the mid lane, and should be able to stand up to almost anyone. This is a team that plays aggressively, and usually knows how to make it work. It’ll be up to the other teams in the group to punish them.

Finally, the Cinderella story from North America: Cloud9. This is a team that was on the brink of having to fight for their LCS spot, only to come roaring back to secure a place at Worlds. The return of team captain and shot-caller Hai has made a world of difference, allowing both Incarnati0n and Sneaky to show their true form as top-tier carries. LemonNation has also displayed some new life, but unfortunately, top laner Balls has been struggling for some time now. Hai’s unconventional approach to the jungle could either be the surprise factor C9 needs to take down teams that appear to be stronger than they are, or it could be their downfall. The mid and bottom lanes have shown the ability to go toe-to-toe against high level competition, but the real questions are going to surround Hai and Balls’ ability to be assets for their team.

My predictions are below. Before we get to them, I’ll quickly note that I believe this group is extremely volatile, and full of very talented teams and players. I feel pretty good about my 1^st and 2^nd place picks, though I’m honestly quite unsure about the last two spots. It’s very possible that my hope for North America to not embarrass itself is affecting my judgment here, and if you disagree with my rankings here, I certainly wouldn’t blame you.

Group A Predictions

1^st: Invictus Gaming

2^nd: Fnatic

3^rd: Cloud9

4^th: ahq eSports Club