Fans celebrate Chinese team’s esports world title

November 8, 2021 Sports

In pubs, university campuses and homes around the nation, millions of esports fans erupted with joy on Saturday night when Chinese club EDward Gaming claimed the world title in a thrilling final.

Underdog EDG beat defending champion Damwon KIA (DK) from South Korea 3-2 in the League of Legends 2021 World Championship in Reykjavik, Iceland, to ensure the Summoner’s Cup will be headed to China.

This is the third world title won by a team from China’s League of Legends Pro League, which is the nation’s top-tier League of Legends professional league. Invictus Gaming won the championship in 2018 and FunPlus Phoenix in 2019.

EDG’s victory became an instant sensation on Chinese social media. Among the top ten topics trending on social media platform Weibo on Saturday night, five were related to the final. The hashtag “EDG vs DK” had been viewed 470 million times by Sunday afternoon.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s League of Legends championship had no spectators.

However, tens of millions of fans across the globe watched the matches through online broadcasts.

“This victory is the best reward for the efforts we’ve made over the years,” EDG player Tian Ye, also known as Meiko, said after the victory. “The winning moment at the world championship will be the most memorable moment of my career.”