HLE Zeka: "In dire moments, in game, I feel like I learnt a lot from Faker"

are considered one of the early favorites coming into League of Legends Worlds 2026. The LCK second seed and MSI 2026 champions have been in great form, losing only to twice during the LCK 2026 season playoffs. The star-studded roster had a rocky start to the year but ramped up massively to lift their second international trophy in Korea.

At the Worlds 2026 Swiss Stage Asset Day, Sheep Esports had the opportunity to chat with HLE’s midlaner, , as he returns to North America, where he established himself as a future superstar and lifted the Summoner’s Cup in 2022.

Kim “Zeka” Geon-woo: “It’s been four years since I last came to the USA. Even back then, I had a really good and comfortable time getting adjusted to the country. This time around, it’s only been 2-3 days but I’m eating well and I’m enjoying my time here. It’s great and I’m feeling comfortable already.

Zeka: It has only been 2-3 days, but we were able to go and eat some Texas BBQ because we heard really good things about it. They are quite well known and famous so I had to try it. It was pretty good but aside from that, we didn’t really get enough leisure to leave our hotel rooms so far. We mostly ate delivery food and lots of Korean food. The Korean food obviously tastes a bit different compared to eating in Korea. It was still really good and we were able to enjoy it.

Zeka: Historically, HLE have been unable to break past the quarterfinals three times. I feel like that’s why we can break through it this time around. I feel like we are in great form both individually and as a team. I have confidence that we can make it further than the quarterfinals in our journey at Worlds this year.

Zeka: Yes

Zeka: 2016

Zeka: Given that it hasn’t been achieved in 10 years, that just proves how difficult it is. I think it will be quite meaningful for me to achieve that and be the second player to do that. It would also mean following in ’s (Lee Sang-hyeok) footsteps, which would be such an honorable thing and a big achievement for me.

Zeka: In dire moments, in game, I feel like I learnt a lot from him because he was able to stay calm, focused, and was able to make shotcalls that really helped in taking care of his teammates. It was quite impressive so I think I was able to learn that while playing alongside him. It was a really good experience being able to learn from such a seasoned and experienced player.

Zeka: I think the most memorable part were the moments that he just had the read on the game which I would have never thought of, and also making the shotcalls that I previously would have never really done. I think those are the most impressive moments that I remember.

Zeka: I have already experienced the first scenario a lot as a player so I don’t think it is going to be that stressful. However, making content as an introvert in front of the camera is a little difficult for me so I would have to choose the first scenario as being less stressful.”