HLE secures Worlds 2026 spot, victory over KT flips LCK race

The 2-1 victory over KT not only helped HLE officially secure a spot in the LCK 2026 Playoffs and become the first representative from the region to qualify for Worlds. This result also pushed the competition among T1, DK, and KT into a more tense phase than ever before.

HLE completes major goal

HLE HLE's start against KT was unfavorable as they allowed their opponent to take the lead. However, the reigning MSI champions quickly regained control, winning two consecutive games to close out the series 2-1.

The result ensures HLE's presence in the Playoffs. More importantly, the orange team became the first LCK representative to qualify for Worlds 2026, although the seed order has not been determined yet. Gen.G has also secured a Playoffs spot, thus can be considered the second team to benefit from the current situation.

T1 cannot afford to be complacent

Among the remaining group, T1 holds a relatively large advantage as they only need one more win to secure a Playoffs spot. However, Faker and his teammates' goal certainly does not stop at just advancing.

The group stage ranking will affect the advantage in later stages. After losses to DK and Gen.G, T1 has made the situation complicated for themselves. If they continue to drop points, they risk losing their spot in the Top 2 and no longer have the initiative to choose their opponents.

Notably, with HLE already securing a Worlds spot, the LCK only has three slots left for the group of four teams still in contention. This makes every remaining match extremely significant.

DK and KT face enormous pressure

DK has been getting positive results but their performance remains inconsistent. For this team, a realistic goal might be to secure at least one Worlds slot rather than risking everything to compete for the LCK championship.

KT, on the other hand, is in a more worrying situation. The decision to replace Aiming with Jiwoo during the crucial stage has not produced the expected results. The loss to HLE further exposed issues in their operational style, making KT the team most at risk of being left behind in the race.

HLE could become the "judge"

Although they have completed their important goal, HLE still has to face DK and T1 in the final matches respectively. Therefore, the results of the orange team can directly impact the rankings and even the Worlds qualifications of their opponents.

HLE now enters the most comfortable position, while T1, DK and KT have to fight with very little room for error. Just one loss in the final stage could completely change the LCK 2026 landscape.