Boostgate Esports, Team Zone earn M7 main draw slots

The M7 World Championship cast has been completed after Boostgate Esports and Team Zone survived a grueling wild card stage, earning the last two main draw spots and completing the 16-team roster.

Boostgate Esports and Team Zone will now see action in the swiss stage set on January 10 in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Both Turkey's Boostgate Esports and Mongolia's Team Zone pulled off narrow wins in the clincher with the Turkish squad defeating previously unbeaten Virtus Pro, 3-2, and the Mongolian team eking out a similar 3-2 escape against Guangzhou Gaming.

The two wildcard winners, along with 14 other outright-qualified squads, will now compete at the swiss stage where teams who secure three match wins will advance to the knockout phase. 

Fresh off back-to-back MPL titles and a Mid-Season Cup (MSC) triumph, the Philippines’ Team Liquid is widely considered the tournament favorite, inching closer to the rare “Golden Road.”

Team Liquid, though, will have a tough first assignment as it locks horns with fellow Filipino bet in Aurora Gaming in the opening round. 

ASide from Team Liquid and Aurora Gaming, a number of Filipino imports are also set to see action in M7 Mark "Kramm" Rusiana and John "Innocent" Banal bannering Malaysia's SRG alongside their Pinoy head coach Michael "Arcadia" Bocado. 

Onic Indonesia is also led by Filipino jungler Kairi "Kairi" Rayosdelsol. 

—JMB, GMA Integrated News