The 2021 Worlds Group Phase is set to start on October 11, and European squad Fnatic will have to be without their star ADC Elias “Upset” Lipp.
Early morning on October 11, esports organization Fnatic sent out a tweet stating that their star bot laner Elias “Upset” Lipp will not be competing for the time being. The reason for his departure from the team being an urgent family matter.
Upset’s replacement will be the ADC of their academy team Louis “Bean” Schmitz who has been preparing with the team in Reykjavik. The young ADC will make his debut on the Worlds stage in their first game on October 11 against the LCK fourth seed Hanwha Life Esports.
At the time, Fnatic asks fans to respect Upset's privacy as he heads home to Germany to be with his family. An outpouring of support from the community followed the tweet, with many wishing the ADC well and all the best.
Worlds 2021 Roster Update pic.twitter.com/UojSgt1iBe
— FNATIC (@FNATIC) October 10, 2021
Whether the ADC will return to the 2021 World Championship is unknown. In the publicized statement by Fnatic, it said that Upset will not be playing “until further notice” which could mean that he is going to miss the whole event.
Fnatic has had a few roster changes this year, with their top laner Gabriël "Bwipo" Rau moving into the jungle and rookie Adam "Adam" Maanane making his rookie debut in the top lane for the squad.
- Check out this years LEC All-Pro Team
Even with the multiple roster changes and player switches, Fnatic managed to qualify for the 2021 World Championship, just behind the MAD Lions who were back-to-back LEC champions this year.
This goes to show that even if Fnatic shuffles things around, they’ve got experienced players to help keep the rookies focused. That’s why even without Upset in the bot lane, Fnatic will still be a competitive and strong team in Group C.
Everyone who knows me understands that playing worlds was always my dream. But there is always a thing more important and that is taking care of your family when there is intense suffering and I felt very bad being so far away in such a difficult time when I was needed so for me
— Elias Lipp (@FNC_Upset) October 13, 2021
FNC Upset Dispels Rumors [UPDATE]
In the early morning of October 13, Elias "Upset" Lipp broke his silence on Twitter, letting fans know that while he wished to have played during the 2021 Group phase, a family matter came first.
This is in response to vicious rumors making the rounds online stating that him leaving Iceland was nothing more than a cover-up of some sort. The Fnatic ADC put those rumors to rest with his thread on Twitter.
When is Fnatic Playing at the 2021 World Championship?
Fnatic is going to have their first game on October 11 against the fourth-seeded LCK team, Hanwha Life. Hanwha Life has shown great resilience in the play-in stage, with star mid laner Jeong “Chovy” Ji-Hoon leading the young team.
- Check out the whole Worlds 2021 Schedule!
Will Fnatic’s replacement ADC, Bean, be able to dominate against veteran bot laner Kim “Deft” Kyuk-kyu? That is the all-important question fans have right now after the news of Upsets departure from Iceland came out.
The game between Fnatic and Hanwha Life is set to start around 15:00 CEST, depending on the two games beforehand between FunPlus Phoenix and DAMWON KIA as well as Royal Never Give UP and PSG Talon.