From Demacia Cup 2022 to Worlds 2023 Semifinals, this BLG team has played a grand total of 189 competitive games since the roster was finalised. Bin and Elk who were starters for the China team in Asian Games has played a whopping 196 games this season, while Xun sits at 192. They reached the finals of Demacia Cup, Weibo Cup, Spring Split, and MSI. They’ve basically played every possible game in the entire year except for Summer Split Finals and Worlds Finals.

For comparison, some LPL/LCK players only play a total of about 80 games per season. For LEC/LCS players it’s probably around 30-50 games per season. Which means that this BLG roster has played more games in a season than some players do in 4 whole seasons.

No one really had big expectations for this roster at the start of the season. Bin was having a rough time in BLG after his 2022 MSI win with RNG. Xun had been basically elohelled in iG since his debut. Yagao left JDG to make room for Knight and was considering to retire. Elk had the worst season of his career in UP last year after a disappointing run with WE in 2021. ON in WBG was constantly getting memed for making the occasional flashy play but also inting a lot.

No one thought they’d make MSI, but they beat four different teams during Spring playoffs to make it there. No one thought they’d make MSI finals, but they beat GENG and T1 to make it there. No one thought they’d have a strong showing at Worlds after their weak performance during Summer playoffs, but they made it to quarterfinals anyway and even beat GENG to make semifinals.

It’s a real shame that they didn’t achieve any major successes despite a whole year of defying odds and expectations. Alas, they’ve always faltered at the last step. And isn’t that reminiscent of life? You can give it all you’ve got, but sometimes that’s not enough. There’s only ever one champion, and that’s who people will remember for years to come. But there are always stories we never hear of, and efforts that never come into fruition. This BLG roster might have wrapped up their 2023 season with a lot of regrets and futile efforts, but having sat through all the highs and lows as a fan, I’m proud of what they managed to accomplish, and I hope the team feels that way too.

To quote Haikyuu, in true BLG spirit: “Today, you are the defeated, but what will you become tomorrow?”