Karmine Corp are heading to MSI 2026 after breaking Movistar KOI’s LEC Spring run in a brutal 3-0. In one of the league's hottest rivalries, KC delivered a dominant performance and knocked out their Spanish counterparts from LEC and MSI contention.
The win sends KC to the
LEC Spring Grand Final where they will face
G2 Esports for the title and the region's top MSI seed. G2 have already secured their MSI spot by defeating MKOI in a reverse sweep last week, but the LEC's first place is still on the line. For MKOI, the defeat means elimination from the Spring Split and a bit of time before their next official match in the Summer Split.
The rivalry between KC and MKOI has become one of the biggest stories in EMEA’s
League of Legends' scene.
The tension only grew during the LEC Roadtrip in Madrid a few weeks ago, where both fanbases packed the arena and turned the event into a playoff-like atmosphere. Since then, every possibility of the two teams meeting has felt personal, but KC has had the final word — for now.
KC lock in and sweep MKOI aside
The series started with
MKOI looking like the sharper side. They controlled much of the early game,
found advantages through skirmishes, and stacked dragons while KC struggled to keep up. Yet every fight seemed to bring the French team a little closer back into the game, and by the mid game the gold, tower, and kill gap had almost disappeared. And once KC found their footing, the momentum quickly shifted.
KC punished isolated MKOI players, won key teamfights, and turned a two-dragons deficit into a Mountain Soul. They followed it up with Baron Nashor, pressuring MKOI, and closed the first game after a fight at the Elder Dragon.
And with the pressure now on MKOI, the second game quickly became a showcase of KC's growing confidence. KC secured first blood and punished every mistake that came their way. MKOI repeatedly overextended and overcommitted, while
KC answered with clean teamfighting and strong map control. By the 15-minute mark, KC looked fully in command and never gave their opponents a route back into the game.
Even when MKOI found a small lifeline by securing the Ocean Soul, it failed to swing the game in their favour. KC won the fight that followed, marched straight into their opponents' base, and secured the second game.
With elimination now only one loss away, MKOI needed to channel some of the off-stage fire that fueled their rivaly with KC in their gameplay — but unfortunately that did not happen.
Instead,
KC completed the sweep by winning an almost rocky third game. The French team looked stronger with every passing minute and never allowed MKOI to build momentum.
By the end of the series, KC had fully taken over the Rift, securing a 3-0 victory, a place at MSI 2026, and a shot at the LEC Spring throphy against G2.
