Hanwha Life (HLE) is crowned the first international champion of 2025 in League of Legends. While Europe’s representatives stumbled in the final, HLE made perfect use of the fearless draft.
The fearless draft is here to stay: After a successful test run in the first split of the year, Riot Games confirmed that the new draft system would continue for the rest of the season. This change is likely to permanently shift the balance of power between the regions.
While teams like T1 and G2 obviously had trouble adapting, Hanwha Life benefited enormously. The season was also more successful than ever for Karmine Corp. But in the First Stand finals in Seoul, KC reverted to its old patterns – and failed across the board.
Karmine Corp: Europe’s stolid titan
The first game of the finals was a long, even game with mistakes on both sides. Korea’s hesitation finally gave KC the advantage. The turning point came in the 29th minute: Karmine Corp started Baron when HLE top laner Woo-je ‘Zeus’ Choi cast several important abilities too early. The French took advantage of the chaos and eliminated Hanwha Life. Another chaotic fight for the dragon’s soul a few minutes later gave Karmine Corp a 1-0 lead.
But instead of taking the momentum from their first victory, the team fell into a state of shock. In game two, the Europeans seemed lethargic and almost incapable of action. Hanwha secured the first Voidgrubs and dragons without any resistance.
Although KC had previously proven that the fearless draft actually suits them, this time they found no way to turn the game around. Even when trying to get the Herald, they were caught off guard. HLE’s jungler Wang-ho ‘Peanut’ Han grabbed the objective in front of three KC players who stood idly by. With this momentum, Korea easily equalized.
Even switching sides for game three did not improve matters. Once again, Europe lost control of the map early on and only reacted to HLE’s moves instead of taking the initiative themselves. Geon-woo ‘Zeka’ Kim and ‘Peanut’ played almost flawlessly to take the 2-1 lead.
Europe suffered a complete debacle in game four
The last match finally turned into a complete debacle for Europe. ADC Henry Caliste ran into the opponent so recklessly during an Invade in the first few minutes that even the casters speculated whether his character had simply run somewhere automatically.
Jungle colleague Martin ‘Yike’ Sundelin followed suit a short time later with a similarly confused action – HLE took the lead. ‘Yike’ secured two dragons for KC, but with a deficit of almost 10,000 gold, they were worthless. In the end, KC’s performance in the final was alarmingly weak and strongly reminiscent of G2’s elimination from the last World Championships.
Regional power shift through Fearless draft
Despite the final blow, KC’s second place remains the best European result since 2019, when G2 won the MSI and was runner-up in the World Championship. The fearless draft not only changed Europe, but also shook Korea: five-time world champions T1 missed out on qualifying for an international event for the first time.
By the end of 2024, the team had lost its star top laner ‘Zeus’ to Hanwha Life after contract disputes, while ADC Min-hyeong ‘Gumayusi’ Lee was benched.
With Riot Games’ decision to keep the Fearless draft until the World Championships, the League of Legends scene is facing another upheaval. But there is still a ray of hope for Europe: perhaps Karmine Corp will pull off a miracle at the Mid-Season Invitational after all – if the team wakes up from its final trance.
