LCK 2026 Regular Season Day One: KT Stomp T1 in Shock Victory
The LCK returned today with two best-of-three series. Hanwha Life Esports faced off against HANJIN BRION in a ninth-place versus tenth-place match. T1 and KT Rolster followed that up with a Telecom War. Both series were a blowout. HLE returned to form, while KT dismantled T1 in a surprise upset victory over the World Champions.
Hanwha Life Esports Versus HANJIN BRION
Game One – Domination From Start To Finish
HLE’s domination on their return started in the bot lane. Gumayusi and Delight forced Summoner spells, which led to Teddy dying in the river later. The snowball kept rolling as the global ultimates for HLE exploded the map. The game only ended at 32 minutes, but the writing was on the wall for some time.
Game Two – Brief Hope Turns Sour
Namgung ran the early game on Pyke to build a lead for BRO. However, after his first death, the game went downhill for them. HLE took over with a dive on the top lane. Teddy kept the game close in the mid-game, but they could never make a full recovery. HLE kicks off the LCK regular season with a series victory. They won 2-0, but there is little to gain from the series.
Champions Played
Hanwha Life Esports
- Zeus – Jayce, Gnar
- Kanavi – Pantheon, Xin Zhao
- Zeka – Ryze, Ziggs
- Gumayusi – Ezreal, Ashe
- Delight – Bard, Seraphine
HANJIN BRION
- Casting – Yorick, Renekton
- GIDEON – Jarvan IV, Trundle
- Loki – Cassiopeia, Azir
- Teddy – Jhin, Mel
- Namgung – Namgung, Pyke
T1 Versus KT Rolster
Game One – KT Ends Game One With Zero Deaths
The draft from T1 was questionable, with a game one Anivia and giving over Ryze and Pantheon. They never had a chance in the game as KT stormed to a game-one victory. T1 did not get a single kill and only destroyed one turret. The script has flipped to start the Telecom War.
Game Two – T1 Is On the Board, But They Lose the Mid-Game
T1 earns the First Blood kill and stays even with KT in the early game. Oner stole a couple of objectives to give T1 a clear win condition. However, they were unable to compete with KT in the mid-game. T1 failed to win a team fight. PerfecT and Aiming have all the space they need to carry the team fights. Not even a Baron steal is enough for T1.
Champions Played
T1
- Doran – Ambessa, K’Sante
- Oner – Jarvan IV, Vi
- Faker – Orianna, Taliyah
- Peyz – Ezreal, Corki
- Keria – Anivia, Nami
KT Rolster
- PerfecT – Jayce, Vayne
- Cuzz – Pantheon, Nocturne
- Bdd – Ryze, Annie
- Aiming – Ashe, Yunara
- Effort – Seraphine, Lulu
Dominant But Concerning Series
HLE finished in last place during the LCK Cup. While they were not the worst-performing team, they suffered from a weaker group record. BRO went 0-5 in the Group Battle. The two teams faced off in the opening match of the LCK Regular Season. It was mostly a routine victory for HLE, but not the most confident win. They had shaky moments in the series, which, against a stronger team, they might have lost to. HLE will face T1 in their next match, which should be winnable given T1’s performance against KT.
A Calamitous First Day For T1
T1 began the LCK Cup, looking to be the second-best team in the league. After the playoffs, they finished fourth, the lowest possible placement they could have had following their Group Battle performance. They have started the LCK Regular Season the way they left off in the playoffs. Their drafts are in disarray. We have seen T1 struggle to win drafts in recent years. However, they usually have individual gameplay to make up for it. That was missing today, as every player lost out to their opponent. T1 got dismantled by a KT team who played Effort in the Support role. He was not even in the KT main roster in the LCK Cup.
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We will cover all the LCK Regular Season, with daily summaries and weekly previews/reviews.
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