TL coach Spawn speaks out: Western teams can only break through by developing their own strategies and breaking conventions.

In the latest episode of the esports podcast, Team Liquid (TL) head coach Spawn shared in depth the team-building logic of League of Legends teams and the competitive landscape of the Western region in 2026.

Spawn believes that Western teams are more competitive in this year's World Championship, but the key to truly breaking the monopoly of Chinese and Korean teams lies in stopping blind copying and establishing independent thinking and innovative strategies.

In the program, Spawn pointed out that blindly imitating top teams in LCK and LPL is tantamount to "copying homework from a book," and excessively pursuing rigid, template-based operations will only make the team extremely predictable.

The real breakthrough for Western teams lies in unleashing their unique creativity, breaking free from conventional thinking, and trusting their players' independent judgment on the field. At the same time, Western teams are showing significant improvement in resilience, focusing more on quickly recovering from losses, and their training match quality and behind-the-scenes training systems have also been greatly upgraded.

When discussing Team Liquid's roster, Spawn emphasized that rather than simply piling on star players, the team prioritizes the complementarity of its tactical pieces. During the offseason, the team established an aggressive style centered around mid laner Quid and quickly signed top laner Morgan, who possesses both excellent communication and macro-level awareness. Subsequently, they brought in the outgoing jungler Josedeodo, injecting crucial team energy into the team known for its strictness.

For the 2026 World Championship, Spawn has set a clear performance baseline: "I must lead the team past the Swiss round. While it's respectable to lose with honor, I've already used up my quota for 'honorable defeat'." He stated that this year's World Championship will be the best test of the team's new system.

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