LOUD’s games on Day 1 of the 2022 League of Legends World Championship were polar opposites of one another. In their first game against Beyond Gaming, LOUD had nothing to say and struggled to make any coherent play. Their second game, against DetonatioN FocusMe, was so dominant from LOUD that they clocked in the fastest victory at Worlds 2022 so far with just 23 minutes of gameplay. LOUD top laner Leonardo “Robo” Souza is glad that his team is getting more respect at the tournament.
At the end of the first day, Robo spoke to Em Dash about LOUD’s first two games, specifically about their drafting adjustments. The Brazilian also discussed his region’s growth, why this year he feels more confident in his team than ever, and explained the #RobsDay social media hype.
Adapting in the draft phase
Congrats on the victory, Robo! It has been a mixed day for LOUD, going 1-1. How are you feeling about the start of Worlds 2022?
I’m very happy with the support that we got from the whole Brazilian community. The victory makes me very happy too.
The game you played against DetonatioN FocusMe was very dominant from LOUD’s side. Quite the opposite from your loss against Beyond Gaming. How do you compare those games?
In the first game, we actually made some choices in the draft that we are not used to play with. We made some changes in our draft for the second game so it matched our aggressive playstyle. Just more aggressive champions. That composition was easier to execute for us and it made winning easier too.
“We are in a better shape this year. I think CBLoL could make it to the Group Stage”
Analysts praised LOUD’s draft in both games. Do you think it’s a strength of you?
Hm, for us it wasn’t about the draft being good or bad. In the first game, we had Azir, Seraphine, and Jax, which we need to scale with. That’s not gonna work for our team. In the second game, we could play a more proactive playstyle. It’s about matching what we want to do in the game.
This isn’t your first international event. How is it to be back?
I’m really happy to get back to Worlds. It’s not easy to win CBLoL. I think we are in a better shape this year. I think CBLoL could make it to the Group Stage this year.
Respect from international teams
It’s good to hear that confidence because CBLoL has traditionally struggled on the international stage. With your experience, how do you evaluate the region’s growth?
I think the CBLoL is going in the right direction now. We are growing new talent, developing rookies, which is a good thing for the region. I also think that, the last few times we played at international events, we struggled a lot in the laning phase. We are better at that now, so we could get further because of that.
Aside from the games you played, how do you notice that the CBLoL is stronger this year?
We have had some good scrims. In the past, we could not arrange good practice and good scrims. We are getting more respect from other teams now. It’s a lot better.
“We are growing new talent, developing rookies, which is a good thing for the region.”
What do you think the reason is that teams are giving LOUD more respect? Are you that good in scrims?
I think that me and tinowns being at Worlds and MSI so many times has given us more respect from the other teams. Showing up here and getting some good games makes life a lot easier if you want to get some good scrims too.
Now for something else: you have a large following and LOUD is obviously a hugely popular organization too. Today you declared “Robsday” and social media went wild. Is that how you get the fans excited for your games?
It’s all about a community streamer in Brazil called Baiano, who last year also made it “RobsDay”. Then people go hunt for other influencers, from outside League of Legends, to make sure that everyone is saying #RobsDay on Twitter. It’s all thanks to our community in Brazil.
Well, to round up then, if today was RobsDay, what is tomorrow going to be?
[Laughs] Today was RobsDay, tomorrow is going to be RobsDay 2. We’re gonna play against [Evil Geniuses] and we’re gonna get a win against them.
For a full overview of the Play-In Stage schedule, click here. You can watch all games on the official LoL Esports site.
