After the LEC Roadshow final, several teams were stuck in Spain for a few days longer than planned. A power outage not only shut down Madrid, but also put the teams’ and casters’ flights home on hold.
It wasn’t a horror movie, but it was close to the events of the TV series Blackout: On April 28, large parts of Spain and Portugal were cut off from the modern world for around twelve hours.
No phones, no restaurants – and, most importantly, no return flights for the four LEC teams that had traveled to Madrid shortly before for the roadshow’s debut. From one second to the next, nothing worked anymore.
Most of the teams took it in stride. Fnatic supporter Mihael ‘Mikyx’ Mehle posted a picture of himself and his team with a few cookies on X: “Enjoying the high-quality Spanish cuisine.” Nothing else seemed to be available in the wake of the power outage.
Caster Eefje ‘Sjokz’ Depoortere also took it in stride, ironically asking, “Donde es la electricidad?” – “Where’s the electricity?” The GiantX team also missed their flight to Berlin and apparently ran into some equally clueless folks from Fnatic at the airport.
Prague instead of Berlin and Katy Perry comparisons
Even though the power outage only lasted half a day, it threw the teams’ schedules into disarray. A few days later, Fnatic posted a photo of the team eating and explained that the return flight from Madrid had been so chaotic that they had ended up in Prague instead of Berlin.
G2, on the other hand, complained that the power outage didn’t happen a day earlier. Would that have prevented the two defeats against GiantX and Fnatic, or just delayed them? Last year’s LEC winner is currently only in fifth place.
But not everyone took the power outage so lightly. Fnatic coach Fabian ‘GrabbZ’ Lohmann was less enthusiastic about the situation on X: “I felt like Katy Perry after she returned to Earth when I was finally able to touch Spanish soil.” He added sarcastically that at least they now had two days to adjust to the new LoL patch.
LEC roadshow a big success so far
Despite the chaos the day after the event, the roadshow itself was a success. According to the organizing team Movistar KOI, the event attracted around 18,000 guests to the Madrid Arena. With 348,000 online viewers on Twitch, there was also lively interest in the event.
The matches played were part of the current LEC Spring Split. The roadshow follows a new concept from Riot Games to bring eSports to different regions during a season and make it an experience for spectators.
The next date for the roadshow has already been set. From May 10 to 11, the teams will visit Karmine Corp in France – but there in a much smaller arena that can only accommodate 3,000 spectators.
That would still make it larger than the studio in Berlin, which seats around 170. The Riot Games Arena was criticized during the 2024 World Championships because of its size. No wonder, then, that mid laner Joseph ‘JojoPyun’ Pyun from KOI is calling for the LEC to be moved to Spain permanently.
