As history has shown, every NRG downfall comes with a joke or meme that spreads like wildfire. The reason these memes always land is simple: they’re born out of pure, shocking unexpectedness.
Let’s take a look back:
NRG vs Cauanzin (1v3 to win the series) at Lock//IN – Nobody expected four Masters winners to fall to such a young player in a 1v3.
NRG s0m Cove moment – Nobody expected those same Masters winners to lose against PRX’s streamer sub.
NRG vs BLG – Nobody expected an unknown Chinese team to take down NRG twice.
NRG vs C9 (12-5 lead) – Nobody expected a struggling Cloud9 to claw back nine straight rounds against a “rebuilt” NRG with s0m and FNS.
NRG Verno punches FNS – Nobody expected the MVP of SOOP to be instantly cut after Kickoff.
Every iconic NRG meme comes from a collapse that no one saw coming.
Now, let’s look at Stage 1. NRG were awful—but no new memes were born. Why? Because expectations were already in the gutter. Every blunder was met with a shrug: “Well, that’s just NRG.” Nothing new, nothing meme-worthy.
Riot knows, though. They know a huge chunk of the VCT fanbase lives off these legendary collapses. And for a new meme to be born, hope for NRG must first be restored. Even the biggest NRG glazers like Dort, Asuna Yukki, and Simp4s0m had abandoned ship. So Riot gave NRG what they needed most: belief.
In Stage 2, they played well and finished 2nd. At Champs groups, they went flawless. And now, with NRG guaranteed top 3, nobody in their right mind doubts them.
Which is exactly why the setup is complete. This is the calm before the storm. When the moment comes—and it will come—the collapse will be so catastrophic, so unexpected, that it will create a meme greater than anything we’ve ever seen.
Beware, NRG fans. This is destiny.
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