en
Fnatic vs Karmine Corp Preview: Keys to the Match with Worlds on the Line
Fnatic and Karmine Corp are about to put on a show in Madrid as they clash in the Lower Bracket of the 2025 LEC Summer Playoffs. Despite their countless encounters, though, this is no ordinary match. For one of these two teams, this will be their final match of the season. The other team, meanwhile, will earn the chance to make their region proud at Worlds 2025.
With so much at stake, this promises to be an explosive series as Fnatic and Karmine Corp look to leave it all on the line this Friday, September 26th, at 5 pm CET.
In the Nick of Time: Poby to Fnatic's Rescue?
Once giants of the LEC, 2025 has not been Fnatic's year. After missing every international event of the year, Fnatic chose to replace Humanoid in the Mid Lane after more than three years with the team. In his stead, the organization brought in the former T1 Academy Mid Laner Poby, and the impact was immediate.
Despite reasonable doubts regarding Poby's ability to communicate with the rest of the squad, Fnatic have looked far more cohesive throughout the Summer Split than they did the rest of the year. Not only are their map movements cleaner, but the team has started playing a much more proactive style of League of Legends, something which has been asked of them for a long time.
One of the biggest surprises of Poby's inclusion (and one which may easily fly under the radar) is how good of a laner the South Korean player has been for Fnatic so far. During the course of the Summer Regular Season, Poby considerably improved on Humanoid's Spring numbers in terms of CS per minute and gold per minute, proving he has what it takes to pressure some of the best players in the region.
Whether Poby's arrival came in too late to save Fnatic, however, remains to be seen.
Karmine Corp: From First Stand Finals to... Missing Worlds?
Just six months ago, Karmine Corp were busy proving they could compete with the very best League of Legends teams in the world. After winning their first-ever LEC title back in Winter, KC shocked fans everywhere by making it all the way to the Grand Finals at First Stand 2025. What seemed like a fairytale start to the year for the team, however, may well have proven to be their downfall.
Ever since First Stand, KC have struggled to maintain their form. For a team like G2, for instance, anything other than winning the LEC is considered a failure. Karmine Corp, meanwhile, are only in their second year in the LEC, and are yet to develop the kind of winning culture that allows a team to continue to grow and evolve despite standing above their peers in the region.
While other squads have shown clear signs of improvement throughout the year, Karmine Corp stagnated. Now, the team will need to dig deep and shore up any shortcomings in their gameplay, or risk missing Worlds altogether.
Keys to the Match:
Can Canna Overpower Oscarinin?
It's no secret that Canna and Oscarinin play vastly different roles for their teams up in the Top Lane. While Oscar excels on tanks and enjoys performing the task of facilitator on Fnatic, Canna is a carry at heart who loves to take over games on picks like Jayce or Rumble.
Throughout the year, Canna has continuously featured in MVP conversations. As far as the LEC Summer Playoffs go, the South Korean player has put up far better numbers than Oscarinin in terms of CS per minute, gold per minute, and damage per minute. If Karmine Corp want to get to Worlds, they will need to do everything they can to accentuate this gap and get Canna in a position to lead the team.
To carry a game at this level, however, one must often take risks. If Canna does not tread that line carefully, this could well provide Fnatic's Jungler Razork with some good avenues to exploit.
Poby and Razork's Developing Synergy
It's only been two months since Poby arrived at Fnatic. And while his arrival has certainly breathed new life into the squad, the player's partnership with Razork still has room for improvement.
At this level, a team's Mid Lane-Jungle one-two punch will often dictate the pace of the early game. Poby will now go up against Vladi who, despite being a formidable player, is far from being the star of Karmine Corp. To put the Mid Laner down and seize control of their games from early on, Poby and Razork's communication and playmaking capabilities will need to be on point.
Prediction: Who Goes to Worlds?
This is it: whatever happens next will be the difference between saying goodbye to the season or punching a ticket to Worlds 2025. The two teams have been on opposing trends throughout the year, with Karmine Corp starting out strong but fizzling out, while Fnatic's form and confidence continues to grow since the lineup change.
For all of Fnatic's efforts, though, the question remains: is it simply too late? Karmine Corp are a young and attractive team, full of mechanically proficient stars and no clear weaknesses on their roster. Moreover, they have already shown they got what it takes to tango with the best of the best. Fnatic, on the other hand, have far more to prove, and very little time to do so.
Prediction: The series should prove to be wildly entertaining and combative. In the end, though, we expect Karmine Corp to triumph in 3-1 fashion.
Our voters believe this will be a close match, but they also incline towards a Karmine Corp victory with 56% of the Strafe fan votes.
Eager to find out who will be the LEC's final representatives at Worlds 2025? Tune in to the league's official Twitch or YouTube channels this Friday, September 26th, at 5 pm CET to catch this lights-out start to the 2025 LEC Summer Finals in Madrid!
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: Michal Konkol/Riot Games
Read more:
New League of Legends Champion Zaahen Backstory Revealed