With the LEC 2023 Summer Split starting soon, let’s see what roster moves have been made over the mid-season break.
LEC Summer Roster Moves – bottom teams looking to upgrade their lineups
It was a tough MSI for the European region, as both G2 and MAD were unable to take down at least one of the eastern teams. Once again, it proved the existence of a gap between EU and the LPL or LCK.
Not many roster moves in this mid-season break, although there are some interesting changes that will shake things up. Given the volatile performances we’ve seen between splits and within the same split (see MAD Lions’ run in playoffs), it’s tough to make any judgment.
The Summer Split will begin on June 17 and end with the LEC Finals in September. Let’s take a look at what roster moves were done among the various LCK teams. Confirmed roster moves will be in bold, while rumors will state the source if available).
Astralis
Astralis come from a decent split, having finished 5th in spring. LIDER’s addition to the team proved to be beneficial for the team’s performance so it’s likely AST will stick to the same roster, hoping to keep up their positive trajectory.
Top: Finn
Jng: 113
Mid: LIDER
ADC: Kobbe
Supp: JeongHoon
Excel Esports
XL Esports were one of the few teams making some buzz during the off-season. While they only changed one player, the current XL roster is quite different from the one seen at the start of the year. Xerxe is no longer on the team, and so are Vetheo and Targamas. In their stead, the British org will have Peach, Abbedagge, and LIMIT, alongside veterans Odoamne and Patrik.
This new iteration of XL will have enormous pressure since the LEC Summer Split will be their last chance to turn the split around. So far, the squad finished in the bottom two on both occasions, failing even to make it to the groups stage. Korean rookie Peach will be the X factor for this team.
Top: Odoamne
Jng: Peach
Mid: Abbedagge
ADC: Patrik
Supp: LIMIT
Fnatic
Fnatic were able to make a small comeback after the disastrous start at the start of the year. That said, the results are still far away from what you would expect from a team like Fnatic. With Rekkles announcing his intention to roleswap to support, Fnatic ended up making a risky yet interesting move: former KT Challengers ADC Noah and KOI’s support Trymbi are rumored to become the new bot lane.
On paper, this roster is exciting and it has great potential to deliver but it will ultimately come down to whether FNC are able to quickly find an identity and playstyle that works for them.
Top: Oscarinin
Jng: Razork
Mid: Humanoid
ADC: Noah (rumored – Alejandro Gomis)
Supp: Trymbi (rumored – Alejandro Gomis) / Rekkles
Read also: LoL Patch 13.11 – How will Riot balance the mid-season patch?
G2 Esports
G2 looked like once again the best western team at MSI and despite their early exit, they put up a great fight against the finalists BLG. Given the results achieved, this is one of the few lineups that doesn’t need any tweaks, and we will see at least all the five players together until the end of the season
Top: BrokenBlade
Jng: Yike
Mid: Caps
ADC: Hans Sama
Supp: Mikyx
KOI
Despite having the championship roster from last year, KOI weren’t able to connect the dots in 2023. According to one of the rumors by Alejandro Gomis, KOI are looking to make a change in the support role: KOI and FNC will make a support swap, bringing Advienne to the Spanish organization.
Top: Szygenda
Jng: Malrang
Mid: Larssen
ADC: Comp
Supp: Advienne (rumored – Alejandro Gomis)
MAD Lions
It was a rough MSI tournament for MAD Lions, who suffered 0-3 losses against T1 and then G2. But aside from that, MAD should be happy about their rise in the spring split which have secured them a spot at the LEC Finals. As long as they can prepare themselves for the tournament, we should be able to see them at Worlds.
Top: Chasy
Jng: Elyoya
Mid: Nisqy
ADC: Carzzy
Supp: Hylissang
SK Gaming
SK Gaming started off the season in great fashion, fighting for the top positions. Their Spring Split, however, wasn’t as exciting, having finished 7th. Regardless, no roster changes are expected ahead of LEC Summer.
Top: Irrelevant
Jng: Markoon
Mid: Sertuss
ADC: Exakick
Supp: Doss
Read more: LPL Summer Split 2023 Roster Moves
Team BDS
It couldn’t have gotten closer than that. Team BDS were one inch away from winning the LEC title and representing EU at MSI, but they were taken down by MAD in a reverse sweep. Nonetheless, the BDS lineup is one of the best ones currently in the LEC and they will continue their 2023 journey together.
Top: Adam
Jng: Sheo
Mid: nuc
ADC: Crownie
Supp: Labrov
Team Heretics
Heretics had a rough season so far, always fighting in the bottom half of the standings. Now that Ruby joined TSM over in the LCS, Team Heretics are rumored to pick up Vetheo from XL and promote their Academy player Flakked to the main team. Unfortunately for Jackspektra, this brings a halt to his season in the LEC.
If Vetheo is able to return to form and find good synergy with Jankos, this might be one of the dark horses of the Summer Split.
Top: Evi
Jng: Jankos
Mid: Vetheo (rumored)
ADC: Flakked (rumored)
Supp: Mersa
Team Vitality
Even Upset wasn’t enough to push Vitality to a LEC title. We’ve seen great stuff from the French team but also weird moments where the team looked disjoint. If they are able to fix that, we will see Vitality fight for the title. Otherwise, it will be yet another split fighting behind the top 2.
Top: Photon
Jng: Bo
Mid: Perkz
ADC: Upset
Supp: Kaiser
Read more: LCK Summer Split Roster Moves