BLG's toplane saga concludes with the signing of Flandre

had a tremendously tumultuous offseason following the announcement of starting toplaner Chen “" Ze-bin’s demotion to the bench. The current back-to-back League of Legends Pro League (LPL) champions can leave the ordeal behind now that they’ve announced the arrival of Li “" Xuan-jun as their new starting toplaner.

However, the arrival of ’s former toplaner wasn’t the simple and quick deal BLG were hoping for. The former EDG player became available after AL brought in Chen “" Chen from , forcing the former to leave the Pandas. This move will reunite Flandre with Park “" Do-hyeon at BLG, his fellow 2021 World Champion.

The LPL’s Split 3 broke Bin’s 1579 consecutive days as BLG’s starting toplaner, if we don’t count several instances of the Demacia Cup and NEST tournaments where BLG rotated their roster in favor of their youth team.

According to several sources, the turbulent transfer started after the conclusion of the 2026 EWC for both BLG and AL. A couple of days later, following an alleged dispute between the players, Bin posts on his Weibo account that he will be benched, a decision that would last around two weeks.

Yang “" Wen-bo is immediately promoted from the youth team. The toplaner is sent to a Shanghai hotel until he apologizes, his behavior improves, or the situation is remedied. On the same day, AL informs Flandre that his contract will be terminated because they’re trying out Breathe.

The next day, AL informs the league they’ve reached an agreement with Breathe, which prompts BLG to talk with Flandre and with Korean toplaner Yoon “" Yong-ho from . Meanwhile, negotiations between BLG and Flandre have reportedly made little progress, while visa and paperwork issues have complicated a potential move for HOYA.

As a result, Bin's return to the starting lineup appeared to be back on the table. According to rumors, veteran midlaner Zeng "Yagao" Qi played a key role in convincing Bin to reclaim his starting spot, with his return was reportedly expected for Week 3 of the LPL Summer Split.

Later, the league officially approved Flandre's contract termination with AL, and BLG gradually came to the realization that there were very few viable toplaners left on the market besides him. That ultimately helped convince the organization to move forward with the signing.

The remaining question is how BLG intend to structure their roster. Whether they commit to a traditional five-man lineup with Flandre, opt for a six-man roster, or even carry a seven-man roster to maximize their flexibility in the toplane remains to be seen.