North America’s best hope for Worlds is giving K/DA a run for its money.
100 Thieves has teamed up with rapper and songwriter Lil Nas X for a new Worlds hyper video. The video features new visuals for “That’s What I Want” from X’s latest album Montero. The Worlds hype video includes footage from around the 100 Thieves Cash App Compound in Los Angeles. The 2021 LCS champions are the best contenders from North America at Worlds.
The video features Lil Nas X appearing inside of the 2021 LCS trophy and several 100 Thieves members dancing to his song. Several 100 Thieves personnel make cameos in the video, including YouTube star Rachell “Valkyrae” Hofstetter and Call of Duty icon Matthew “Nadeshot” Haag. Both personalities partly own 100 Thieves, and they may have played a role in opening talks with Lil Nas X.
100 Thieves has quickly become one of the most influential esports brands in North America. The team’s list of partnerships and collaborations includes Lexus, Cash App, AT&T, Lexus, and Chipotle. Considering 100 Thieves was co-founded by the Cleveland Cavaliers NBA team, the esports organization definitely have the capital to make mainstream sponsorship agreements. Partnering with Lil Nas X to release a Worlds 2021 hype video is yet another way of bringing League of Legends esports closer to the mainstream.
Is 100 Thieves a favorite at Worlds 2021?
100 Thieves have entered League’s biggest yearly event as the strongest contender from North America for Worlds 2021. The squad earned an LCS title this year, ending its run with a commanding 3-0 finals victory over Team Liquid. But success at home doesn’t necessarily equal a big result at Worlds. 100 Thieves is up against some of the best teams in the world starting from the group stage.
Group B is a very strong group with Chinese juggernaut EDward Gaming and Korean icon T1. 100 Thieves is expected to win its match against Japanese upstart DetonatioN FocusMe, but that’s about it. 100 Thieves defeating EDG or T1 would be an upset. But out of the three North American teams attending Worlds 2021, 100 Thieves is perhaps the most likely to break into the playoffs.
