LoL University Series Grand Finals are this Sunday!

After months of heated competition, LoL.exe (University of Exeter) will take on Bristol Whipped (University of Bristol) for the League of Legends University Championship this weekend!

The League of Legends University Series Grand Finals take place this Sunday, 5th May, at the Red Bull Gaming Sphere in London. The action begins at 2pm BST and you can follow it every step of the way over on Twitch!

If you’re in the London area or happy to travel, you can also grab your free ticket and attend in person to cheer the teams on.

The story so far

Way back at the end of last year, nearly 300 teams began their run to the LoL University Series Grand Final, with participating teams initially divided into North and South regions for the Winter Split. Teams fought it out in a modified Swiss format, playing three games every Sunday for six weeks, with the aim of making it into the top 16 for their region and qualifying for the Varsity Division in spring.

After that bloody initiation, the top 32 teams in the country then went head to head in the Spring Split to compete for the top prize - a VIP trip to Berlin to watch the LEC, as well as a chance to represent the UK in the University Esports Masters. Those who didn’t make the top 32 were still able to compete in a national tournament run alongside Varsity, with bundles of Riot Points and Triumphant Ryze skins going to the winning squad.

The teams

Lol.exe (University of Exeter) come into the finals the strong favourite to take home the crown. They already topped the NUEL power rankings, and they also defeated the previous year’s winners, Grey Warwick, in the group stages of the competition. They will look to their ADC and highest-ranked player, ‘high on anxiety’, to try and eke out an advantage in the botlane. With a 15-2 score in the competition so far, expect a strong performance from the Exeter side.

Bristol Whipped (University of Bristol) came out of nowhere this year to take the League of Legends University scene by storm. The previously lesser-known university didn’t make it into our power rankings, but nonetheless have shown that they deserve to be in the finals, beating out some tough teams to make it to the final stage.

They will look to focus on the top side of the map, playing around split pushes from their top-laner ‘Do Nothing Top’. With a slightly worse 13-4 record so far, and this being their first big run in the competition, they are the underdog for the finals, but they wouldn’t have made it this far if they didn’t have what it takes to pull off an upset and go all the way.

Follow all the action live on The NUEL's Twitch channel from 2pm this Sunday, 5th May, or grab a ticket and attend in person at the Red Bull Gaming Sphere in London. GL HF to the teams!