Gen.G dominates, DK upsets the reigning champions, and the West continues its rise on Day 2 of Worlds 2026

Despite only being two days in, Worlds 2026 has already been delivering banger after banger. With the LPL choking on day one and going 0-4, the door has been left wide open for other regions to rise to the occasion, and the West has wasted no time taking advantage. But can they keep it up?

With two Western teams already sitting at 2-0 and more trailing close behind, could 2026 finally be the year that more than one Western team makes it to knockouts? South Korea, however, has remained as dominant as ever, with the LCK yet to drop a single game against non-Korean opposition. The West may have a golden opportunity on its hands, but taking down the LCK will be another story entirely.

From the get-go, it was obvious that this day would be a banger, with opening hostilities by taking down , the reigning LPL champions. With this result, AL now faces imminent elimination, while TES rises to 1-1 despite effectively playing without its starting toplaner due to visa issues. If anything, this match confirmed just how strong the Nocturne-Locke combination has been at Worlds this year, though TES ultimately proved superior across the board. Though he had not played much recently, deserves credit for stepping up after having not won a series since February due to inactivity. He put in a strong individual performance and came out on top in his matchup.

The Spanish stallions have not let up, even if their second-day matchup proved a more comfortable affair than their opener. Indeed, after beating the First Stand champions and MSI finalists Bilibili Gaming, continued its ascension by cleanly taking down . The victory puts MKOI at 2-0 and gives the team a shot at qualifying straight to the quarterfinals, with just one more series win needed to secure its place.

, in particular, has continued to play out of his mind, showing a completely different face from his recent LEC performances. Still, MKOI's success has largely been a team effort, with every member deserving credit for the squad's strong start.

Oh, … While the LEC champions managed to take down and redeem themselves after throwing their opening game against Dplus KIA, their showing has remained far from convincing. Now sitting at 1-1, G2 will have to massively step it up if it wants to make it to the quarterfinals.

For now, the team remains far from its usual form, with in particular struggling across two consecutive performances. It is hard to pinpoint exactly what has gone wrong, but G2 has undoubtedly struggled to keep up with the rest of the world thus far.

Despite looking poised to join MKOI and give Europe two representatives at 2-0, fell short when it mattered most and was ultimately devoured by . Indeed, despite some early struggles, this game came down to superior teamfighting and coordination from and his gang, who eventually prevailed over a KC side that looked too shaky in the later stages despite getting the better of the early game.

With this result, both the LEC and LCS are now one series win away from the quarterfinals. Only time will tell which teams make it through, however, and whether LYON's defensive playstyle will hold up against LCK and LPL opposition ready to exploit its weaknesses.

Much like in the previous game, came into this matchup all guns blazing, with strong topside play and even a solo kill from midlaner over . Still, as is often the case against teams from the LCK or LPL, the later stages of the game eventually swung in 's favor. Stronger macro, better map movements, and international experience ultimately proved decisive.

Rookie himself also redeemed his earlier performance with some clutch Orianna Shockwaves, making a real impact when it mattered and helping his team climb to 1-1. IG will now look to build on this momentum as the tournament progresses.

Regarded as potential favorites to win the entire tournament, wasted no time dispatching and securing a qualification series. The match was heavily tilted in favor of the LCK champions, who swiftly took down their regional rivals thanks to immaculate play from , who masterfully outclassed .

With another convincing win under their belt, Gen.G are now one series away from securing their place in the quarterfinals and remain firmly in contention for the crown.

While the early game seemed to suggest that a world-class was ready to claim yet another title, had other plans. Indeed, the LCK's fourth seed took control in the mid game, notably off the back of , who taught his former team a lesson and brought DK to a qualification match. Overall, the game was slow and calculated, a typical old-school LCK affair with very few kills, but it remained an interesting display of space control and objective play. With this loss, T1 now also falls to 1-1.

Though the match was slow… like, real slow… eventually emerged on top. The Chinese representatives were never really challenged by , who elected to turtle from the moment the game started, before they had even fallen behind. If anything, this game served as a lullaby to fans who stayed up late to watch Worlds. Indeed, Team Liquid now stands as the only LCS or LEC team still winless after day two, following a series of questionable early map contests, mechanical misplays, and, eventually, an apparent inability to do anything at all, seemingly refusing to play the game. BLG, meanwhile, climbs to 1-1, while Team Liquid faces potential elimination in the next round.