Dplus KIA and Gen.G Reach Worlds 2026 Quarterfinals as iG Upsets HLE

Dplus KIA and Gen.G have become the first teams to qualify for the League of Legends World Championship 2026 quarterfinals after finishing the Swiss Stage with undefeated 3-0 records. Both LCK representatives secured their places on October 25, with Dplus KIA sweeping Movistar KOI 2-0 and Gen.G coming from behind to defeat LYON 2-1.

The third day also brought two important victories for China's LPL. Invictus Gaming upset Hanwha Life Esports, while Top Esports defeated G2 Esports. Both Chinese teams are now one series victory away from the Knockout Stage, leaving their opponents at risk of elimination.

Dplus KIA became the first team to advance after a convincing victory over Movistar KOI. The LCK's fourth seed had already beaten G2 Esports and T1 in the opening two rounds, putting it in position to secure early qualification.

The opening game featured the tournament's first pentakill, secured by Sin "Smash" Geum-jae on Kai'Sa. His performance helped Dplus KIA take the lead before the Korean team delivered an even stronger showing in Game 2.

Heo "ShowMaker" Su dominated the second game on Syndra, finishing with a 9/0/2 KDA as Dplus KIA completed the sweep. The victory secured the organization's first Worlds quarterfinal appearance since 2022.

Movistar KOI dropped to 2-1 but remains in contention for qualification.

Gen.G faced a much tougher series against North America's LYON, which threatened to cause one of the tournament's biggest upsets.

LYON took the opening game behind strong performances from Kacper "Inspired" Słoma and Kim "Berserker" Min-cheol. The team repeatedly found favorable fights and prevented Gen.G from establishing its usual control.

LYON continued to challenge the LCK champions in Game 2, but Park "Ruler" Jae-hyuk helped turn the match around on Ashe. Kim "Kiin" Gi-in also played an important role on Ambessa, allowing Gen.G to level the series.

The deciding game remained competitive before Gen.G gained the advantage in teamfights. Kim "Canyon" Geon-bu delivered a strong performance on Jayce, while Kiin's Camille and Joo "Duro" Min-kyu's Nautilus helped secure the 2-1 comeback.

Gen.G joined Dplus KIA in the quarterfinals, while LYON moved into the 2-1 bracket with another opportunity to advance.

Invictus Gaming delivered the day's biggest upset by defeating Hanwha Life Esports in a best-of-one match. The Chinese team gained control through its bot lane, where Zi "JiaQi" Jia-Qi impressed on Yunara.

Song "Rookie" Eui-jin also contributed as Invictus Gaming maintained its lead and closed out the game. Hanwha Life suffered its second consecutive defeat after losing to Gen.G in the previous round.

Top Esports followed with a victory over G2 Esports. Bai "369" Jia-Hao stood out on Ambessa, while Yu "JackeyLove" Wen-Bo's Varus helped the Chinese team win important fights and secure the result.

Both LPL teams now hold 2-1 records after losing their opening matches. Hanwha Life and G2, meanwhile, have fallen to 1-2 and must win their remaining Swiss Stage series to stay in the tournament. The competition continues on October 26 with the remaining Round 3 matches. T1 faces CTBC Flying Oyster, while Bilibili Gaming meets Karmine Corp in the 1-1 bracket.

The first elimination matches will also take place, with LOS facing Team Secret Whales and Team Liquid Alienware meeting Anyone's Legend. All four teams enter with 0-2 records, meaning the losing sides will become the first teams eliminated from Worlds 2026.