The 2025 World Championship final is set for a blockbuster rematch at the 2026 LCK Cup. T1 and KT Rolster will lock horns once again this Friday, the 23rd.

Recall that these two sides were the protagonists of the previous 2025 World Championship, walking away as champion and runner-up respectively. Momentum currently sits with T1, who managed to scrape through two full-series wins against Hanwha Life Esports and DRX during the opening week. KT Rolster, meanwhile, is sitting at a 1-1 record, having secured a win against DN Super only to be stifled by Gen.G. If you look at the numbers, T1’s newcomer 'Peyz' Kim Su-hwan is currently outclassing KT's 'Aiming' Kim Ha-ram, leading in almost every critical metric for a bot laner, including KDA and damage per minute.

Still, never write off a classic telecom derby. Few expected KT Rolster to push T1 to the absolute brink during the last Worlds final, yet they did exactly that. This rivalry runs deeper than just current form.

This year’s LCK Cup introduces the 'Super Week,' where teams from the same seed face off. During this window, all matches are best-of-five affairs, with two points awarded to the group of the winning team. Think of the upcoming second week as the final skirmish before that chaos; with the two groups currently locked at a 5-5 stalemate, the stakes for every single game have been cranked up significantly.

The second week is particularly spicy, with the group leaders clashing in ways that will likely dictate the fate of the Baron and Elder groups. Gen.G, the Baron group’s top dog, faces Elder group leader Dplus KIA on Saturday the 24th, while Sunday the 25th features a clash between T1 and BNK FearX. These matches are the true barometers for the season.

Dplus KIA has been stuck in a tragic slump against Gen.G, currently staring down the barrel of a 19-match losing streak in official play. However, after a rock-solid opening week, there is a glimmer of hope that they might finally end this miserable streak.

The T1 versus BNK FearX match is a stylistic clash for the ages. T1 relies on the sheer might of their top-side trio—'Doran' Choi Hyeon-joon, 'Oner' Moon Hyeon-joon, and 'Faker' Lee Sang-hyeok—to funnel resources into a decisive bot-side carry. Conversely, BNK FearX thrives on the explosive aggression of 'Diable' Nam Dae-geun. It will come down to who can shut down the other’s identity first.

The Wooribank Gold King award for the first week of the 2026 LCK Cup went to BNK FearX’s bot laner, 'Diable' Nam Dae-geun. He was instrumental in their win against Nongshim RedForce on Thursday the 15th, particularly in the first set where his damage output left his lane opponent in the dust.

The Gold King award is given to the player with the highest average gold income per week, provided they have played at least four sets. The winner walks away with a silver coin.

Week 2 of the 2026 LCK Cup runs from Wednesday through Sunday at the LCK Arena in Jongno-gu, Seoul, with live broadcasts available via Chzzk and SOOP. The group stage continues through Week 3, which concludes with the 'Super Week' best-of-five format. Tickets are available via NOL Ticket, opening 48 hours before each match.