Cloud9 miss Worlds 2025 after loss to 100 Thieves

The boys in blue are down. Despite looking like one of the best teams in North America all year long, Cloud9's latest fumble against 100 Thieves in the LTA North Split 3 Elimination Phase sees the team eliminated from the tournament.

The shocking loss means that C9 have failed to qualify for the LTA Championship, meaning they won't even get a chance to compete for a spot on the biggest stage: Worlds 2025.

Cloud9 Nosedive at the Wrong Time

A staple of North American League of Legends, Cloud9 started Split 3 in the LTA North in fantastic form. The team finished the Regular Season in joint first place after putting up a flawless 6-0 game record, sweeping away the competition. By the time the Elimination Phase kicked off, however, an entirely different C9 showed up.

The team started their playoffs run on the wrong foot, losing their opening match against Shopify Rebellion 2-3, falling to the Lower Bracket. Down to their last life, C9 went on yet another marathon series, defeating Disguised 3-2 to keep their Worlds hopes alive. 100 Thieves, however, had other plans.

After going to Silver Scrapes for the third consecutive time in these playoffs, Cloud9 opted to let the rivals have several power picks in the final game of the series with 100 Thieves drafting a comp made of Gwen-Pantheon-Yone-Smolder-Taric. Sure enough, C9 were made to pay for their mistakes, losing crucial teamfights that would cost them the series.

This is not the end Cloud9 wanted for their season. (Credit: Robert Paul /Riot Games)

A Historic Low

For the longest time, Cloud9's name rang synonymous with success in the LCS. That all seems to be changing lately, though.

C9's Split 3 woes means the squad won't get to travel to Texas for the LTA Championship, where teams from the North will face off against the best teams from the South to decide who will get to represent the LTA at Worlds 2025.

Without so much as a chance to compete for their spot, Cloud9 has now missed Worlds twice in a row for the first time in the organization's history. Now that the team's season has ended prematurely, C9 might want to use the extra time on their hands to begin working on turning the ship around ahead of the 2026 season.

Meanwhile, 100 Thieves' win sees the team qualify for the LTA Championship, where they will join FlyQuest and Shopify Rebellion to compete for a chance to make the North proud against their neighbors to the South and book their ticket to Worlds.

But first, make sure to follow the remainder of the Elimination Phase on Strafe to find out who will be crowned the final LTA North champions of the year.

Follow Strafe Esports for all the latest League news and our X account for the latest content and coverage. Also, stay tuned to Strafe YouTube for exclusive interviews, press conferences, and more.

Featured image credit: Robert Paul/Riot Games

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