Los Ratones reached their second consecutive EMEA Masters Grand Final with a convincing 3-0 victory over the highly fancied BK ROG Esports in their EMEA Masters Spring semi-final contest.
Having qualified for the EMEA Masters as the top seed from France’s LFL, BK ROG Esports were considered one of the main rivals to the NLC representatives’ hopes of winning another EMEA Masters.
Despite hairy moments in the early-mid game, Rekkles and co. gradually took economic control in each game, dominating drake kills and winning several key team-fights on their way to another Grand Final.
Los Ratones defeated Ici Japon Corp. Esport 3-0 in the EMEA Winter Grand Final and will be vying for back-to-back EMEA Masters trophies. An accolade that, in Marc ‘Caedrel’ Lamont’s words, proves a team are “basically the best team outside of LEC.”
They will face either Barça eSports or Karmine Corp Blue, Karmine Corp’s academy venture, in the Grand Final on Sunday (16:00 BST). The Grand Final will prove to be a test for The Rats, who lost to both of those teams in Winter groups before Los Ratones went on to win the competition.
What’s next for Los Ratones?
Los Ratones will look forward to their Grand Final on Saturday. After that, the plan is to compete in NLC and the EMEA Masters for the remainder of the year, extending to the Summer splits of both leagues if they qualify for the EMEA Masters again.
Despite their success, Caedrel’s plan is to push beyond the limits of tier two League of Legends, despite the high barrier to entry for tier one. While Caedrel has consistently said Los Ratones would not pay the 20m fee for an LEC spot, the British content creator and Los Ratones coach is open to several options, including being picked up by a franchised team or exploiting LTA’s limited promotion/relegation system and moving regions.
If the team cannot make it to tier one, Caedrel has stated an openness to play showmatches and tour regions. Considering Los Ratones’ first official was against T1 in such an official, it seems a natural fit to push their ceiling higher on a competitive level.
Darragh Harbinson is an esports writer specialising in Counter-Strike. He has written for Esports News UK, Esports Insider, UKCSGO, Dexerto, and Rush B Media.
