LoL - LCK: Gen.G advance to the Worlds main event, T1 are sent to the Play-In

T1’s journey in the LCK came to an end on September 21, falling to their eternal rivals Gen.G in a tense 3-2 series in the lower bracket semifinals. With this victory, the MSI champions move on to the lower bracket final, where they will have the chance to redeem themselves against KT Rolster, who had beaten them by the same score just a few days earlier. The winner of that clash will go on to face Hanwha Life Esports in the grand final, after HLE clean swept KT.

This victory also carries another meaning: Gen.G have secured direct qualification for the Worlds 2025 main stage, set to take place in China from October 15 to November 9. T1, on the other hand, will have to go through the Play-In on the October 14 against the fourth seed from the LPL to reach the main event. The Chinese team is not yet known, as it will be determined by the final best-of series in the Regional Finals.

The series was long and high-level, five games between Gen.G and T1 for the delight of every League of Legends fan. Game 1 started slow, as is often the case in the LCK, with only two kills in 16 minutes before the first major fight around the Herald. T1 came out ahead thanks to a beautiful Shockwave from Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok’s Orianna, combined with a flawless Public Execution from Choi "Doran" Hyeon-joon's Ambessa. However, Gen.G continued to scale, and once Kim "Kiin" Gi-in’s Camille reached full strength, T1 couldn’t contain their opponents and eventually fell, giving Gen.G the first point in the series.

In Game 2, T1 played comfortably. Mun "Oner" Hyeon-jun’s Jarvan IV and, most importantly, Doran’s massive Aatrox at top carried the team. Ryu "Keria" Min-seok delivered plays on Alistar that you usually only see from Lee Sin players, and the Miss Fortune did her job in the backline. T1 equalized, showing they had the level to compete.

The T1 mid-jungle duo is undoubtedly one of the best in the world and they proved it once again during the third game. Faker’s performance on Taliyah was flawless; he finished with the highest damage and handed T1 a match point. Jeong "Chovy" Ji-hoon had to respond, unwilling to let Faker steal the spotlight. His perfectly played Cassiopeia in Game 4, facing a T1 draft that severely lacked damage, was enough to push the series to a decisive Game 5.

Gen.G showed their mastery in champion drafting, with a “Press R” composition featuring Ornn, Nocturne, Vex, Lucian, and Rakan. T1 tried to play poke with Jayce and Ziggs. The early game looked promising for the reigning two-time world champions, as they secured three towers quickly, but when it came to grouping and fighting, Gen.G could easily target and execute their chosen opponent, securing objectives repeatedly. They kept up this pressure until T1’s Nexus fell, sealing the fate of their rivals and advancing Gen.G to Incheon for the final two series of the LCK 2025.

Only two best-of-five series remain in the LCK 2025, both to be played in Incheon. First up is a revenge clash between Gen.G and KT Rolster to decide the third seed of the LCK and determine who will face Hanwha Life Esports in the grand final to crown the sole LCK champion of 2025. Recently, HLE’s jungler Han "Peanut" Wang-ho announced that he will begin his mandatory military service in 2026, making the final likely his last series in the LCK.