LoL: Mid laner Abbedagge signs with Excel Esports as sub for LEC 2023
League of Legends star Felix “Abbedagge” Braun has reportedly signed with Excel Esports as a substitute mid laner for the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) 2023.
In the last two seasons, Abbedagge spent time as a mid laner for the North American team 100 Thieves, in the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS). With 100 Thieves, the German player reached all three LCS finals.
Abbedagge and 100 Thieves have also participated twice in the World Championship. The team, however, could not make it past the group stage on each occasion.
Overall, the 23-year-old ranked second among mid laners in LCS in the previous Summer Split. He was only behind Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg, who took over his spot in 100 Thieves this offseason, according to LoL analytics Games of Legends.
Abbedagge’s last European team was FC Schalke 04. Although the team did not make it to international tournaments at that time, Abbedagge stood out among his team members during the LEC regional qualifier run in 2019.
LoL reporter Brieuc Seeger said Abbedagge later may receive offers from other teams while playing as an Excel substitute. The player will serve as a backup for Excel’s starting mid laner Vincent “Vetheo” Berrié.
Vetheo joined Excel this offseason along with Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu, Andrei “Xerxe” Dragomir and Raphaël “Targamas” Crabbé. Vetheo previously played for Misfits and he also received All-Pro honors in Spring and Summer Splits last year, earning the MVP title in the Spring Split.
Meanwhile, Odoamne and Xerxe are considered veteran players in EMEA’s LoL scene. Odoame, who previously played for Rogue — now KOI, is a top laner. Xerxe, who moved from Astralis, takes up Excel’s jungler spot.
Top mid laners in LEC 2023
Analysts have highlighted top mid laners who will participate in this year’s LEC. Alongside Vetheo, there are four other candidates — Luka “Perkz” Perković, Marek “Humanoid” Brázda, Emil “Larssen” Larsson and Rasmus “Caps” Borregaard Winther.
Despite being one of the youngest mid laners among the bunch, analysts have described Vetheo as “the most explosive” mid laner in the tournament. He carried Misfits last year, posting relatively balanced stats in 2022 — 9.1 CS/ minute, 68.1 percent kill participation and a 49 percent win rate.
Team Vitality’s Perkz did not show a bold performance in 2022, unlike when he was still playing for G2. However, his individual performance saved Vitality from defeats several times. Perks recorded 9.0 CS/minute, 61.7 kill participation and a 46.7 percent win rate.
Fnatic’s Humanoid dominated the LEC scene last year. He also contributed immensely to his team’s victory over T1 in the group stage of Worlds 2022. Throughout last year, Humanoid posted 8.9 CS/minute, 59.6 percent kill participation and 57.9 percent win rate.
Many fans consider KOI’s Larssen one of the most underrated mid laners in Europe’s LoL scene. He was instrumental in KOI’s historic win over G2 in 2022’s LEC Summer Split. Last year, Larssen recorded 8.8 CS/minute, 69.5 percent kill participation and a 60.3 percent win rate.
Caps from G2 is considered the best European mid laner in LoL. His individual performance saved G2 from near defeats last year. The player posted 71.8 percent kill participation and a 55 percent win rate in 2022.
About LEC 2023
Last year, Riot Games announced significant changes for the upcoming LEC 2023. This season, LEC will only have three days of matches — Saturday, Sunday and Monday — per week throughout the season. In the past, there would be two days of matches weekly. This change also means that the tournament will likely have the Superweek event every week.
Instead of two large splits in a year like in the past, the LEC will start implementing three smaller splits in 2023. Riot makes this change to combine more important games in a similar period.
The LEC 2023 Winter Split will start on January 21.
