With only one week remaining in the 2026 LCK regular season, the race for the top spot in the Legend Group and the battle for Play-in qualification in the Rise Group have reached a fever pitch.

The League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK), the professional Korean league for League of Legends (LoL) hosted by Riot Games, has concluded the first week of the 2026 regular season's fourth round. Following the first week of matches held from Wednesday the 12nd to Sunday the 16th at LoL PARK in Jongno-gu and the KSPO Dome in Songpa-gu, Seoul, the final second week of the fourth round will take place at LoL PARK from Wednesday the 19th to Sunday the 23rd. The final results of this regular season will determine the postseason bracket and final standings.

In the Legend Group, Gen.G secured a four-game winning streak by winning both of their matches in the first week of the fourth round 2-0, climbing to sole possession of first place with a 18-6 record. Gen.G defeated Hanwha Life Esports 2-0 on Thursday the 13rd and followed up with a dominant victory over T1 at the 'LCK Team Roadshow: T1 Home Ground' on Sunday the 16th. Meanwhile, Hanwha Life Esports, despite their loss to Gen.G on Thursday, maintained second place with a 17-7 record after defeating kt Rolster 2-1 on Saturday the 15th. With this win, Hanwha Life Esports secured a playoff spot and, as the MSI champions, also clinched a ticket to the 2026 LoL World Championship.

Dplus KIA also fueled the competition at the top by winning both of their matches in the first week. After sweeping kt Rolster 2-0 on Wednesday the 12nd, Dplus KIA pulled off a 2-1 comeback victory against T1 at the 'LCK Team Roadshow: T1 Home Ground' on Friday the 14th, after dropping the first set. This match continued the unique trend of away teams winning at the Team Roadshow, following the '2026 LCK Team Roadshow: Gen.G Homestand House of Gen.G.' Currently, the Legend Group is tightly contested, with only one game separating first-place Gen.G (18-6), second-place Hanwha Life Esports (17-7), third-place T1 and Dplus KIA (16-8), and fifth-place kt Rolster (15-9). The first and second-place teams in the Legend Group earn a direct bye to the second round of the playoffs, while the third and fourth-place teams start in the first round, and the fifth-place team drops to the Play-in stage to fight for survival.

In the Rise Group, Hanwha Life Esports' sister team, Hanwha Life Esports Challengers (HLE Challengers), was the first to secure a Play-in spot. Although they lost 0-2 to Nongshim RedForce on Friday the 14th, they defeated KDF (Kwangdong Freecs) 2-1 on Sunday the 16th to finish with a 9-15 record (set differential -8), securing their Play-in ticket as the top team in the Rise Group. The remaining two Play-in spots will be contested by BNK FEARX (9-15), Nongshim RedForce (8-16), and KDF (7-17). The final outcome will be decided by key matchups, including Nongshim RedForce vs. KDF on Thursday the 20th and BNK FEARX vs. Nongshim RedForce on Sunday the 23rd. DN Supers, already eliminated, have recently gone on a three-game winning streak and are expected to act as a spoiler in their upcoming match against KDF on Saturday the 22nd.

Meanwhile, 'Romer' Jo Woo-jin, the mid-laner for HLE Challengers, was selected as the winner of the 3rd round of 'Woori WON, THE PLAY,' which recognizes the best highlight of each round. Jo led his team to victory with a pentakill against BNK FEARX on Friday the 7th. The winner of this award, which is presented four times during the regular season, receives a trophy and a small gift, and the live broadcast features the raw reactions from the venue through 'Woori WON, THE FULL SHOT.' The final week of the 2026 LCK regular season will be broadcast live on online platforms Chzzk and SOOP, and tickets can be purchased via NOL (Yanolja) starting 216 hours (9 days) before each match.