LoL – Worlds 2025: T1 eliminate Top Esports and reach their fourth consecutive final

T1, the double reigning champions, five-time winners overall, reach their eighth Worlds final in ten appearances. Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok and his teammates eliminate the last remaining LPL team, Top Esports, in a one-sided match. (3-0)

“T1 does not lose to the LPL.” A statement that has never rung truer than in this 2025 edition, as T1 just eliminated both Chinese teams that made it to the playoffs. They extend their incredible undefeated streak against LPL teams in Worlds best-of-five series, now standing at 13–0 across 13 years of competition.

No one seems able to stop T1 at Worlds. The South Koreans, year after year, seem destined to be here when the tournament reaches its end. This Sunday in Shanghai, history repeated itself. Just like last year, Top Esports fell without managing to take down a single T1 Nexus. And once again, they ran into a version of T1 that looked nothing like the one that struggled through the Swiss Stage. When this team reaches the playoffs, they transform.

All three games were almost entirely one-sided. The first was a relatively calm affair, with Top Esports slowly suffocated by T1’s superior macro and micro play. In the second, the Chinese team crumbled against T1’s relentless crowd control, getting stomped in every teamfight. The third saw the LPL’s third seed fight back with aggression (Qiyana, Aurora, and Draven), but it was ultimately in vain.

Top Esports’ toplaner, Bai “369” Jiahao, seemed to be the only one truly up to the challenge, offering real resistance in every game with both his creativity and mechanical precision, especially on K’Sante and Ambessa. But once again, the main protagonists of the match were on the other side. It’s hard not to highlight T1’s two carries—Lee “Gumayusi” Min-hyeong and the timeless Faker—constantly set up for success by Ryu “Keria” Min-seok, who also shone in this series on his comfort picks (Rakan, Renata Glasc, Neeko).

The grand final is already shaping up to be one for the history books. For the first time, the world will witness a Telecom War with all the ingredients to become the most legendary in history. This clash takes its name from the origins of the two teams—KT and SKT—both giants of South Korea’s telecommunications industry, known for producing some of the most spectacular rivalries in League of Legends.

This is a date with history. For the fourth time ever, the Worlds final will feature two LCK teams: the third seed, KT Rolster, and the fourth seed, T1. While there’s a clear favourite on paper, a Worlds final has the power to defy all logic. After all, the last all-LCK final already saw T1 face DRX and Kim “Deft” Hyuk-kyu in 2022, culminating in one of the greatest runs in League of Legends history. The grand final will take place on Sunday, November 9, at 8:00 a.m. CET.