LCK 2026 Regular Season Ends With Gen.G on Top and Playoff Race Set

The LCK 2026 regular season closed Sunday (Aug. 23) with one final burst of drama, as Gen.G and Hanwha Life Esports secured the top two seeds while T1, Dplus KIA and KT Rolster were left to take very different routes into the postseason.

The biggest result of the final week came Saturday, when Dplus KIA defeated Gen.G 2-1. Gen.G entered the series in first place and had already built a strong position after beating KT Rolster and T1 in the preceding week, but Dplus’ comeback win ensured the race for the top of the Legend Group would go down to the final day.

Gen.G hold out to finish the LCK 2026 regular season on top

Gen.G ultimately held on to first place, while Hanwha Life Esports claimed second after closing the regular season with a convincing 2-0 sweep of T1. HLE’s victory was particularly significant because it guaranteed the MSI champions a bye into the second round of the playoffs. T1, meanwhile, fell to third and will have to begin its playoff run in Round 1.

That result left T1 and Dplus KIA as the third and fourth-seeded teams, with both entering the playoffs one round earlier than the top two. KT Rolster finished fifth after losing to both Gen.G and T1 during the final week, sending them into the Play-In stage with their season still on the line.

The Rise Group delivered its own high-stakes finale. Nongshim RedForce defeated BNK FEARX 2-1 on Sunday, securing the final Play-In ticket and eliminating DRX and DN SOOPers from contention.

Hanjin Brion and BNK FEARX had already positioned themselves for the postseason, meaning the final result mainly determined the seeding of the teams heading into the Play-In bracket.

With the regular season finished, attention now turns to the Play-In stage from Aug.t 26-28, where KT, FEARX, Brion and Nongshim will fight for the remaining playoff places. The main playoffs begin August 29, setting the stage for the LCK's final push toward Worlds 2026.