The first week of
LEC Versus has come to an end, and no team managed a perfect week. Seven teams finished with two wins and one loss, four others had the opposite record, while only
Los Ratones failed to win a single game. Several teams confirmed their status, including
GIANTX,
Karmine Corp, and
Movistar KOI.
Other teams also impressed, notably Natus Vincere and Shifters, whose only losses came after throwing their own lead. G2 Esports had a shaky start, finishing the week 1–2, level with KCB, SK Gaming, and Team Heretics, who are also struggling at the beginning of the season.
Day 1
Rekkles ended the series 0/0/0
Martin "Rekkles" Larsson hadn’t played in the LEC for two and a half years, his last stint being in 2023 as Fnatic’s AD Carry. Last Saturday, “the King in the North” returned to Europe’s Tier 1, this time as a support for Los Ratones. In the opening match of LEC Versus 2026, the Swedish support faced his former team, Fnatic, on Braum, finishing the game 0/0/0 without participating in any of Los Ratones’ two kills.
Chaotic endgame between GIANTX and Shifters
After a rather dull opening game in the LEC between LR and Fnatic, the second match was a completely different story, as GIANTX and Shifters delivered an exciting showdown. The game was closely contested throughout, with Ilias "nuc" Bizriken and Adrian "Trymbi" Trybus showing great proactivity for Shifters, while Oh "Noah" Hyeon-taek and Yoon "Jun" Se-jun often came out on top for GX.
In a dramatic finish,
Shifters pushed all the way to GX’s Nexus, just a few auto-attacks away from winning, when GX managed an unexpected defense, saving their base. They then countered by teleporting into the enemy base, finishing the game, it was just a few auto-attacks short of victory for the Swiss organization.
Karmine Corp or Karmine Corp?
Since Karmine Corp Blue won the EMEA Masters Summer 2025, they earned the right to compete in LEC Versus, and what better way to start their year than against their sister team, Karmine Corp. While the game was largely dominated by KC LEC, the academy’s young players still put up a respectable fight, with their mid-jungle duo delivering a particularly strong performance.
Caps pulls a Faker
In the final game of the opening day, Rasmus "
Caps" Winther and G2 suffered a heavy defeat against Movistar KOI. Early in the match, Joseph Joon "
Jojopyun" Pyun solo killed Caps in the midlane after a misclick from Caps, who accidentally used his
teleport on the spot, allowing Jojopyun to secure the kill. The rest of the game turned into a complete stomp in favor of the Spanish team.
Day 2
Yukino with a 100 CS lead over Velja
On the second day, Los Ratones and Karmine Corp Blue delivered a remake of a BO we saw in the ERL in 2025, with the game largely dominated by the French team. Johnny "Yukino" Dang built a CS lead of over 100 against Veljko "Velja" Čamdžić. Meanwhile, Xu "Tao" Hongtao Alessandro secured the first LEC win ever on Zaahen, becoming only the third toplaner to do so. worldwide.
Mikyx takes down Fnatic
On the second day, SK Gaming faced Fnatic, with Mihael "Mikyx" Mehle, who recently joined SK to build his team, going up against his former squad. While few expected much from SK’s new roster, the Slovenian support proved them wrong. Adam "LIDER" Ilyasov and Martin "Wunder" Hansen delivered strong performances, helping their team secure the victory.
First set for Spain
The first Franco-Spanish showdown between two title contenders, KC and MKOI, ultimately went in favor of the latter. KOI’s players seized the opportunity to echo the trademark gimmick of Karmine Corp midlaner Kang "kyeahoo" Yea-hoo, letting out repeated “Ahooooouu” calls in voice comms as the South Korean player struggled throughout the game.
Day 3
Fnatic wins with grit
Fnatic started the third day at 1-1 and needed a win to secure a strong position near the top of the standings, but it wasn’t easy against a 2-0 Natus Vincere. The game was largely dominated by the Ukrainian organization until Fnatic turned things around, thanks to a standout performance from Iván "Razork" Martín Díaz, who finished 1/2/15 with 16 kill participations out of 17.
Zhonya on Renekton?
In the game between Team Vitality and Karmine Corp Blue, there wasn’t much competition between the two teams. The Bees completely dominated the match, with Turkish toplaner Kaan "Naak Nako" Okan on Renekton building a Seeker's Armguard before completing a Zhonya's Hourglass—an unconventional item choice on The Butcher of the Sands.
Los Ratones hold their own against KC
To close out the week, Los Ratones gave their all to make a strong impression in their debut in the LEC, featuring the first Vi top of the European elite's history for Simon "Thebausffs" Hofverberg. The game started in favor of Karmine Corp, but Tim "Nemesis" Lipovšek’s team fought back to even out the gold. Despite a strong performance from the Slovenian midlaner, Karmine Corp ultimately secured the win, finishing their week 2–1.
At the end of the game, Karmine Corp posted a video on X showing Marc "Caedrel" Lamont where the exit of the studios was, following a first week that ended at 0–3. The clip quickly sparked strong reactions from fans of the British streamer, who appears in the video despite allegedly not having given his consent.
A stomp it is
After opening the week at 0–2, just as they did last year, G2 responded emphatically in their third match. The reigning LEC champions steamrolled SK Gaming, with Caps holding a 50 CS lead over LIDER at the 13-minute mark. The gap was arguably most pronounced in the jungle, where Rudy "SkewMond" Semaan built a gold advantage of more than 7,000 over his compatriot Duncan "Skeanz" Marquet.
LEC Versus Standings after Week 1
LEC Versus Standings after Week 1. Credit: Sheep Esports
LEC Versus Week 1 Results
January 17:
- Los Ratones 0-1 Fnatic
- Shifters 0-1 GIANTX
- Team Heretics 0-1 Natus Vincere
- Team Vitality 1-0 SK Gaming
- Karmine Corp Blue 0-1 Karmine Corp
- Movistar KOI 1-0 G2 Esports
January 18:
- Team Heretics 0-1 Shifters
- Los Ratones 0-1 Karmine Corp Blue
- Team Vitality 0-1 Natus Vincere
- SK Gaming 1-0 Fnatic
- G2 Esports 0-1 GIANTX
- Movistar KOI 1-0 Karmine Corp
January 19:
- Natus Vincere 0-1 Fnatic
- Team Vitality 1-0 Karmine Corp Blue
- Team Heretics 1-0 GIANTX
- Shifters 1-0 Movistar KOI
- Los Ratones 0-1 Karmine Corp
- SK Gaming 0-1 G2 Esports
