LCK Cup 2026 Week 1 Recap & Highlights: Gumayusi vs T1, Faker’s Failed TP, ShowMaker Makes the Show

The opening week of the LCK Cup has just concluded, and the first ten matches of the competition have already delivered a number of surprises. Fans were eagerly anticipating the debut of the world’s top teams following a busy offseason, and this first week provided an opportunity to see the new rosters in action, as well as to assess the league’s latest arrivals. Sheep Esports presents its top five highlights from week one.

All eyes were naturally on Friday’s headline matchup between T1 and Hanwha Life Esports. For the first time in the LCK, Lee "Gumayusi" Min-hyung faced his former team after the two games between the teams in KeSPA Cup. Hanwha Life claimed the opening game, but T1 raised their level in the next two and reminded everyone why they are three-time world champions. Struggling in game 1, Kim "Peyz" Su-hwan looked far sharper on Aphelios in game 2, before Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok led the charge to victory. Choi "Doran" Hyeon-jun also stood out in game 3 with a surprising Akali pick that left HLE on the back foot.

It was a disappointing start for Hanwha Life Esports, who failed to reassure a few days later with another defeat, this time a 2–0 loss to Nongshim RedForce. Led by their solo laners Hwang "Kingen" Seong-hoon and Lee "Scout" Ye-chan, NS outclassed an HLE side still searching for cohesion, with Seo "Kanavi" Jin-hyeok and Kim "Zeka" Geon-woo struggling to find their footing. The inaugural LCK Cup champions will have a chance to respond next week against BRION and DN SOOPers.

After dismantling HLE, the reigning world champions followed up on Sunday morning with a victory over DRX. It was not without resistance, as DRX fought back convincingly, notably through toplaner Lee "Rich" Jae-won and jungler Kim "Willer" Jeong-hyeon, who secured game 2. T1 recovered in game 3, however, tipping the series in their favor and improving to 2–0.

Named MVP against HLE, Faker once again drew attention against DRX, though not always for the right reasons. In game three, he paid an inadvertent homage to Rasmus "Caps" Winther by accidentally teleporting onto nearby minions. The misplay nevertheless baited Son "ucal" Woo-hyeon into overextending in lane, forcing a flash moments later in response to Mun "Oner" Hyeon-jun’s pathing. For the sake of narrative, this sequence will be generously classified as a successful bait by Faker.

Heo "ShowMaker" Su remains unmistakably himself, and he wasted no time showcasing his creativity in the opening week. Against BRION, the 2020 world champion welcomed new midlaner Cho "Roamer" Woo-jin to the league in emphatic fashion. On his signature LeBlanc, ShowMaker dominated the Orianna matchup, securing three solo kills against his counterpart.

A few days later, he repeated the feat with an Ekko pick in game two against DN SOOPers. Traditionally strong into Syndra, the champion allowed ShowMaker to pressure Lee "Clozer" Ju-hyeon throughout the lane. With cohesive team play and convincing performances, Dplus KIA opened their season with two wins, while ShowMaker currently boasts the league’s highest KDA at 54, with just a single death.

Gen.G Esports follow T1 at the top of Group Baron with a perfect 2–0 start. In their opening match against DRX, Gen.G left little room for doubt and immediately asserted their status as reigning LCK champions. On Ezreal, Park "Ruler" Jae-hyuk showcased his class with a clean 1v2 outplay against the enemy jungle-support duo and a quadra kill in game two.

In their second match of the week, Gen.G faced KT Rolster in a rematch of last Worlds’ semifinals. Back on home soil, Chovy and his teammates got their revenge. Jeong “Chovy” Ji-hoon capitalized on one of the rare mistakes from Gwak “Bdd” Bo-sung to secure a solo kill and tilt the matchup in Gen.G’s favor.

Despite expectations of seeing the Worlds finalist botlane reunited, DN SOOPers opted for a different setup. While Seo “deokdam” Dae-gil started as AD carry, he was paired with Kim “Life” Jeong-min instead of Jeong “Peter” Yoon-su, who remained on the bench. Life and deokdam had already played together at FunPlus Phoenix in 2024, and they reunited this week at Peter’s expense.

With KT Rolster and Dplus KIA as their opening opponents, DNS did not have the easiest start to the season. Despite taking game one against KT Rolster, the team ultimately suffered two defeats and will look to secure their first series win this week against DRX or Hanwha Life Esports.