MAD Lions vs. Team Liquid: Worlds 2020 play-in betting analysis

William Davis Published 24/09/2020

The first match between North American and European teams at the 2020 World Championship will be between Team Liquid and MAD Lions on the first day of the play-in stage. 

Both teams have been performing well throughout the summer split and will now write the first chapter of the regional rivalry in 2020. Liquid qualified as the LCS third seed, while MAD Lions took the new fourth spot for the LEC. 

While the two teams didn’t manage to climb to the top of their respective league, they still proved that they deserve to be at Worlds. Being the two clear favorites in group A, this will be one of the most important matches in the play-in stage to decide which team will secure a direct ticket to the main event.

The other teams in group A are not to be underestimated, but many experts predict these two sides to advance in the tournament.  

It will be an interesting matchup because the two teams have way different playstyles. Liquid is known for its slow and controlled style of play, going for scaling compositions and team fighting. 

MAD Lions on the other hand has been versatile in the LEC, but mostly going for aggressive early games with a lot of action around the mid lane. MAD Lions has also tried to play slower compositions, but these compositions have not typically impressed.

The most important matchups will be the mid lane and jungle. MAD Lions jungler Zhiqiang “Shad0w” Zhao and mid laner Marek “Humanoid” Brázda like to play very aggressively and try to snowball from the early game. The Danish Liquid duo of jungler Mads “Broxah” Brock-Pedersen and mid laner Nicolaj “Jensen” Jensen will have to withstand that pressure and maybe even punish some potential overaggression.

If the game goes late, then Liquid might have an advantage when it comes to its coordination in team fights and macro play, but MAD Lions will not be an easy opponent to play slowly against.

MAD Lions are slight favorites against Liquid in Worlds play-ins

It’s no surprise that the LEC team will have a slight edge from the bookmakers, as Europe has been performing better in recent years. With that said, the matchup is still very close, which the odds also indicate. 

A MAD Lions win will give odds 1.65, while a Liquid win gives odds 2.08. The two odds are tight, so the game could definitely end as the first nailbiter at Worlds. MAD Lions will be playing one other game before facing Liquid, so there is a chance that the odds will change depending on that performance. 

The game will be the last of the play-ins day one on Friday, September 25. 

Read Also

Esports Betting

The Best LCS Summer Split Week 7 Odds: Upsets On The Horizon? Ben Boland The LoL betting world is in for a treat this weekend as the LCS Summer Split regular season enters its final week. Everything is to play for, from the battle for first place to who starts life in the upper bracket. Esports betting sites are unsurprisingly covering the games extensively, and here my tips to bet on for each LCS match this weekend. This is a series that could go ...

League of Legends

LEC Playoffs Round 1 Betting Tips: G2 vs Vitality & Karmine Corp vs GIANTX Ben Boland The 2026 LEC Summer Playoffs are finally here in the world of LoL betting. After weeks of regular-season action, the battle to get to Worlds 2026 is heating up. Team Vitality, G2 Esports, GiantX, and Karmine Corp start their playoff run in the upper bracket. Both sets of matches have a lot of betting potential, with some decent value to be found. Here are some of the best bets to ...

League of Legends

Caps Hall of Legends skins prices and dates revealed Hannan Mundia Caps is the latest League of Legends player to be inducted into the Hall of Legends, and the LEC player’s dedicated skins have been revealed, including their prices and release dates. The Hall of Legends is Riot Games’ way to honor a handful of the most well-known and celebrated professional players associated with LoL. The first inductee was naturally Faker, while the second was Uzi. The third player is Caps, ...

League of Legends

Five Support Champions To Pick Up in LoL Patch 26.17 Ben Boland The support meta in League of Legends is one of the most highly discussed roles in the game right now. With Riot doubling down on the roaming support playstyle, we will likely see more champions added to the pool around the time of Worlds 2026, which begins on 15 October. At the time of writing this article, the current patch, 26.17, is being tested on the PBE, with the launch ...

League of Legends

These Are Five Top Lane Champions To Pick Up in League of Legends Patch 26.17 Ben Boland League of Legends patch 26.17 is just around the corner, and with that patch comes more changes to the role. The days of ADCs in the lane are starting to be a thing of the past, with more bruisers hitting the gym before the launch of 26.17. Many top laners are receiving buffs on the new patch, while powerhouses such as Nasus and Vayne are on the chopping block, making ...

League of Legends

Here Is What To Expect From the League of Legends Patch 26.17 Ben Boland It’s less than a week until the release of League of Legends Patch 26.17, and with this patch comes some significant nerfs to popular champions, item adjustments, and targeting roaming supports as mage bottom lanes dominate the meta. While there is plenty to unpack in this week's patch from Riot Games, two champions, Vayne and Xerath, have received the biggest nerfs across the board. Here are some of the biggest ...

League of Legends

Trade on LGD vs Bilibili Gaming at Polymarket — Use Promo Code WINGGPREMAR Ben Boland Bilibili Gaming comes into their best-of-three series against LGD Gaming as the overwhelming favorites, with Polymarket traders giving the MSI finalists an 83% implied probability of winning at the time of writing this article. The prediction market doesn’t give LGD much of a chance at all, and with traders backing BLG heavily, it paints a picture of who is most likely to win this series in the LPL Split 3, ...