I still remember that quarterfinal weekend of the old NA LCS Spring Split Playoffs. It was the kind of weekend that made me fall in love with competitive League of Legends all over again. The bracket promised chaos, and the matches delivered it. From a swift sweep that was secretly a nail-biter to a historic upset that ended a dynasty's perfect finals streak, nothing went according to the script. Even now, in 2026, when the North American scene has evolved into a different shape and the old LCS is a memory, I use that weekend as my personal reminder: playoff League is a different beast.
Saturday: Team Liquid vs Cloud9
On Saturday, Team Liquid faced Cloud9. The series was short-lived on paper: Doublelift and company defeated Cloud9 in three straight games. But I cannot call it easy. The matches themselves were anything but simple. Cloud9 looked to be nearing victory more than once, only for the momentum to swing back in Team Liquid's favor. It felt like Team Liquid simply got hot at the right time, while Cloud9 could not climb out of its recent losing skid. Cloud9's season ended with them losing eight of their final eleven games. That statistic still stings when I think about how talented that roster was.
What I loved about that sweep was the tension underneath the scoreline. A 3-0 can lie. It can hide the Baron steals, the desperate teamfights, the split-second calls that decide a game. Team Liquid won, but Cloud9 made them earn every inch. In the moment, I thought Team Liquid was peaking. In hindsight, I see a team that survived, not a team that dominated.
Sunday: TSM vs Clutch Gaming
Then came Sunday. Team SoloMid versus Clutch Gaming subverted everyone's expectations. TSM entered as heavy favorites. They had seemed to finally hit their stride during the final few weeks of the regular season. When they won the first game of the series, I thought the script was set. TSM would advance, the veterans would steady themselves, and the semifinals would feature the usual names. Instead, Clutch Gaming gathered themselves and absolutely smashed TSM in the next three games. They secured their spot in the semifinals and left me staring at my screen in disbelief.
TSM's loss was more than a typical playoff defeat. It marked a first in NA LCS history. Upon their elimination, TSM would not participate in the Split finals for the first time ever. Up until that point, TSM had participated in all 10 Split championship matches in history. That is a decade of domestic finals appearances. I remember thinking that the league had just crossed a line. The dynasty was not gone forever, but its aura of inevitability was.
The four remaining teams also looked to make history of their own, because none of the organizations involved had yet won a Split banner. The only three teams who had ever won a Split in the NA LCS -- TSM, Counter Logic Gaming, and Cloud9 -- were now all officially eliminated. That meant one of the remaining teams would finally join their ranks. For me, that was the most exciting part. The playoff bracket had become a door to a new era.
Here is how that quarterfinal weekend reshaped the bracket:
| Matchup | Result | What I remember |
|---|---|---|
| Team Liquid vs Cloud9 | Team Liquid won 3-0 | Close games, C9 nearly won multiple times, but TL got hot |
| Team SoloMid vs Clutch Gaming | Clutch Gaming won 3-1 | TSM took game one, then Clutch smashed three straight |
| Historical note | TSM eliminated | First time in NA LCS history TSM missed Split finals |
| Champion guarantee | New winner | TSM, CLG, and C9 all eliminated; none of remaining teams had won |
After that, Team Liquid advanced to face the #2 seed Echo Fox on Saturday, March 31. Clutch Gaming prepared to see if they could pull off another huge upset by taking down the #1 seeded 100 Thieves on Sunday, April 1. I remember trying to predict those matches and failing immediately. As that weekend taught me, anything can and will happen in Spring Split playoffs. Prediction feels almost useless when the pressure rises and the bracket opens up.
Looking back from 2026, I appreciate that weekend even more. The old NA LCS had its flaws, but it gave us stories like this: a giant falling, an underdog rising, and a guaranteed new champion. In today's League of Legends landscape, with new formats and new regions, I still measure playoff chaos against that Saturday and Sunday. It was not just a set of results. It was proof that history is fragile. TSM's perfect finals streak ended. Cloud9's season ended in a skid. Team Liquid survived. Clutch Gaming announced themselves. And the fans, including me, got a reminder that esports does not care about our predictions.
If I could tell my past self one thing, it would be this: do not look away. The quarterfinal round of the NA LCS Spring Split Playoffs was as crazy as we anticipated, and somehow even crazier. That is why I still watch. That is why I still remember. And that is why, even in 2026, I will never fully trust a playoff favorite again.