This Thursday, December 4, the
KeSPA Cup officially revealed the rosters of the
14 participating teams for its 2025 edition. Seven of the ten LCK teams, along with Team Liquid and Cloud9, will be fielding their new lineups ahead of the 2026 season. All-star teams from Japan and Vietnam will also take part. As a reminder, the KeSPA Cup will run from December 6 to December 14 and the
group draw has already been made.
For the first time, this tournament—usually skipped by many pros due to its offseason timing—will carry significant stakes. This year, participation in the KeSPA Cup is mandatory for players hoping to qualify for the 2026 Asian Games, a competition highly sought after since it gives Korean players the chance to represent their country and, if victorious, earn exemption from military service.
Notably, Gen.G will not be fielding Jeong "Chovy" Ji-hoon or Park "Ruler" Jae-hyuk, both of whom already won gold at the 2022 Asian Games. Back then, Choi "Zeus" Woo-je, Seo "Kanavi" Jin-hyeok, Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok, and Ryu "Keria" Min-seok also took home medals — and all four will be competing this time around with their respective teams.
A look ahead to 2026
Of the 12 major-league teams playing in the tournament, nine will showcase their full 2026 rosters. Among them: BNK FEARX, Dplus KIA, DRX,
Hanwha Life Esports with Seo "Kanavi" Jin-hyeok and
Lee "Gumayusi" Min-hyung, OKSavingsBank BRION (the reigning champions), Nongshim RedForce,
T1 with Kim "Peyz" Su-hwan, as well as
Cloud9 with Eain "APA" Stearns in the midlane and Team Liquid with their brand new topside composed of
Park "Morgan" Ru-han,
Brandon "Josedeodo" Villegas, and
Lim "Quid" Hyeon-seung.
Only three teams won’t be fielding their starting lineups: DN Freecs, who are using their LCK CL roster; Gen.G, who replaced Chovy and Ruler with players from Gen.G Scholar (their second academy), though Kim "Kiin" Gi-in, Kim "Canyon" Geon-bu, and Joo "Duro" Min-kyu will still play; and KT Rolster, who have only Gwak "Bdd" Bo-sung from the main roster, accompanied by their full LCK CL squad in the other roles.
As a reminder, the competition will be streamed exclusively on DisneyPlus across eleven Asia-Pacific regions — including Japan, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, and of course, South Korea — with broadcasts available in both Korean and English.
Header Photo Credit: LCK/Riot Games
