Bae "
Sponge" Young-jun has joined
Nongshim RedForce in the
League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) for the 2026 season as the team announced on Wednesday. At 21 years old, the South Korean jungler is considered one of the top prospects in Korean jungle and will be playing outside of DRX for the first time.
So far, Nongshim’s offseason looks promising.
Jung "Jiwoo" Ji-woo has been announced as departing from
DRX and will be replaced by Kim "
Taeyoon" Tae-yoon, as announced by the team. Several players are also signed through 2026 but have yet to be officially confirmed. Son "
Lehends" Si-woo and Hwang "
Kingen" Seong-hoon could likely remain. Sponge will therefore be replacing Kim "
GIDEON" Min-seong, who has parted ways with NS.
Sponge began his career in late 2021 in the LCK AS, where he played alongside Jeon "Siwoo" Si-woo and Sim "Haetae" Su-hyeon. In Summer 2022, he joined DRX Challengers in the LCK CL. Later, the team reached the Spring Split final and won the 2023 Asia Star Challengers Invitational, notably with Seo "deokdam" Dae-gil.
That year earned him a promotion to the organization’s main roster, but the team never really managed to perform, finishing 9th in both the Spring and Summer 2024 splits. In 2025, things didn’t improve, with a seventh-place finish in the LCK Cup and ninth in LCK Rounds 1-2, placing them in the Rise group, where they ended second-to-last in the Summer, just ahead of DN Freecs with a 9–21 record.
