In an ironic turn of events, Fnatic played xFin with 3ringers, including Slund who was teammates with N0tail, Fly and NoVa_ back in inFlux Gaming. Finale on the other hand played with ringer ikZu from Inner Circle Elite, while ex-member AeiOwnedYou filled the last spot. Fnatic seemed lost without their 3 main players, as Freshpro sat the series out in the observers, and were beaten quite convincingly by xFin.
On the other side of the brackets, Evil Geniuses had to overcome a powerful surge by Inner Circle Elite to face Infused Gaming in the semifinals. ICE at one point had complete momentum on their side, with an overall lead of nearly 20k, but a brilliant bait by Evil Geniuses allowed them to obliterate the 4 ICE members who arrived using Nymphora's ultimate. Evil Geniuses eventually won the tournament, ending their recent spell of disappointing performances. They were boasting a new member to their roster as well, adding SemiJew who was the last teammate of the 4 iLx members currently in MSI.
With that tournament result, the top 5 teams in the ladder standings are guaranteed a spot in the Invitational regardless of the result in the final qualifier. DuskBin eSports and Inner Circle Elite are the favourites to clinch 2 out of the last 3 spots with 20 points apiece while other teams like Binary Evasion, SK Gaming, TS-Gaming and Dirty Minds would have to reach the final to stand a chance of qualifying. Deal With it could seal their fates by grabbing the final spot if they win their 1st round match, but it seems unlikely as they have shown inactivity in the past few qualifiers.
| Top 8 as it stands | ||||
| Team | Games | Wins | Losses | Points |
 FnaticMSI* | 15 | 13 | 2 | 65 |
 Evil Geniuses* | 11 | 9 | 2 | 45 |
| Finale* | 9 | 7 | 2 | 35 |
 Infused Gaming* | 10 | 7 | 3 | 35 |
 Team Wahlin* | 9 | 5 | 4 | 25 |
 DuskBin eSports | 8 | 4 | 4 | 20 |
| Inner Circle Elite | 8 | 4 | 4 | 20 |
 Deal With it | 3 | 2 | 1 | 10 |
The last spot mathematically is still anyones game so long as they reach the final or win it, but should the teams from the top 5 continue to participate, chances seem unlikely except for the more established teams mentioned previously.
Who do you think will clinch the last 3 spots in the invitational?
Links
HoNreplays.org - Source
