One of the greatest things about League of Legends is the fact that the game is never truly over until the nexus falls. Over the years, we've seen a number of crazy matches where teams have managed to pull back a game or a series to secure a comeback over their opponents. Here's our top seven picks for the greatest comebacks in LoL esports history.
7. FlyQuest vs CLG - NA LCS 2017 Spring Quarterfinals
During the quarterfinals of the NA LCS 2017 Spring Split Playoffs, Counter Logic Gaming dominated FlyQuest 2-0 at the beginning of a best-of-five series, which looked like it would be a clean sweep.
However, FlyQuest miraculously turned the match around and picked up the remaining three games unexpectedly, propelling the team to the semifinals with a reverse sweep victory.
6. UoL vs Fnatic - EU LCS Spring Split 2016 Week 8 Day 2
Week 8 of the 2015 EU LCS Spring Split saw the Unicorns of Love take on Fnatic, who would eventually go on to win the title after an undefeated Summer Split run. The game looked to be over when Fnatic sent its remaining members to take out UoL's exposed nexus, which had a sliver of health remaining.
However, UoL demonstrated an impenetrable defense strategy and refused to let Fnatic win, killing the remaining players and allowing them to counterpush back into Fnatic's base and destroy the nexus.
5. LMQ vs Cloud9 - NA LCS Summer Split 2014 Week 2 Game 2
LMQ Tian Ci demonstrated an impressive performance against Cloud9 during the early stages of the 2014 NA LCS Summer Split, managing to push into C9's base and destroy all three of their inhibitors.
However, Cloud9 managed to somehow withstand the constant waves of super minions and fight back to take the game over LMQ with a gigantic team push.
4. G2 Esports vs UoL - EU LCS Spring Split 2017 Week 5 Day 1
You have to feel bad for the Unicorns of Love after this series - they committed their entire team to taking down G2 Esports' exposed nexus, which survived on one autoattack's worth of health after the end of the fight.
With AD carry Jesper "Zven" Svenningsen picking up a quadra kill whilst defending the nexus, G2 Esports were able to counterpush back and pick up the 2-0 series win against Unicorns of Love.
3. Moscow 5 vs CLG.EU - Dreamhack 2012
During DreamHack 2012, CLG.EU managed to perform a miraculous comeback and win their game against Moscow 5 despite a gold deficit of over $25,000.
With vital walls from mid laner Henrik "Froggen" Hansen's signature Anivia, CLG.EU were able to pick up a number of kills on stranded members of Moscow 5 and push their base for a victory.
2. SKT vs SSG - 2016 World Championship Finals
The 2016 World Championship finals was the first time the series went to all five game, as Samsung White fought back against the near-unbeatable SK Telecom T1.
Whilst Samsung was unable to close out the series, they were able to come back from a 0-2 game deficit to pick up two games against SKT despite the pressure, with every match being incredibly even. Samsung shocked the audience with their comeback and solidified themselves as the second best team in the world.
1. SK Gaming vs Fnatic - IEM Katowice
The greatest comeback in LoL history is also the most famous backdoor story. When Fnatic lost two members in a vital team fight, SK Gaming prepared for a push against their nexus towers in what would have likely been the final moments of the game.
However, Fnatic mid laner Enrique "xPeke" Cedeño Martínez managed to distract his opponents from finishing his base by singlehandedly attacking their nexus with his Kassadin, which resulted in him destroying the nexus alone while skillfully outplaying the SK Gaming members trying to stop him.
xPeke's victory just goes to show that even when your team is on the brink of losing, all it takes is one player to turn the game around.
