LMQ runs away with first NA Challenger Series: is a Chinese team on the road to the LCS?

Yesterday, Chinese competitive League of Legends team LMQ took a step towards becoming the first-ever Chinese team to compete in the North American LCS. With a commanding 2-0 victory over Complexity.Black, LMQ sealed its victory in the first NA Challenger Series of the year, and gave itself a strong chance to earn a place in the LCS promotion tournament that will take place after the second Challenger Series is completed.

The victory was well-received in China, where many esport fans are eager to see whether the LMQ (which one of China’s better teams but certainly not its best) can compete against the top teams in the North American server region.

Of course, LMQ will still have to accomplish quite a bit before it gets there. Having emerged from first Challenger Series with 9 points, LMQ is now likely to move on to the Challenger Playoffs, but the team will have to be sure it puts in a decent performance in the second series to make that a certainty. Then, of course, to secure a spot in the LCS promotion tournament, LMQ would have to be one of the top three finishers in the Challenger Playoffs. But I must say, after watching LMQ demolish Complexity.Black, it certainly seems likely that we’ll see the Chinese team given a shot at breaking into the North American LCS in a few months’ time.

Although it may seem a bit strange for a Chinese team to be pursuing the highest levels of League competition in North America rather than playing in the Chinese league or the GPL, LMQ has definitely gone all-in in the pursuit of their American dream. With the help of sponsor iBuyPower, the team plans to stay in the US even if it misses its shot at LCS promotion this summer. The players are working on their English and planning to begin streaming to help them attract more North American fans, and after such a commanding win in their first NA Challenger Series, it looks like LMQ’s American star is on the rise.

If you missed the LMQ v. Complexity.Black match, you can check out recordings of both games below: