kt Rolster defeated Nongshim RedForce in the 2026 League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) regular season Round 1 match held at LoL PARK in Jongno on the 9th, securing their third consecutive win and moving into sole possession of first place as of today.

Nongshim led the early bottom lane phase well, with Jarvan IV joining in for a dive that took down both members of KT's 'Aiming-Effort' duo. KT responded by calling in 'Cuzz's' Pantheon to take down 'Taeyoon's' Ezreal. Although Bard fell, it was a better trade than playing passively.

However, Nongshim still held the initiative. KT looked to play around Bard and Pantheon. Using Pantheon's ultimate to target the bottom lane, they caught Karma and Ezreal, evening the score. 'Effort's' movement was sharp. Pantheon and Bard continued to control the map, gaining advantages through chaotic skirmishes. While Nongshim kept losing these fights, their macro play kept them in the game, preventing a significant gold gap. Notably, KT secured three dragon stacks before the 20-minute mark.

In the fast-paced match, Nongshim hit a massive jackpot by picking off the troublesome Pantheon and Bard before cleanly securing Baron. But KT immediately capitalized on the moment Jarvan's flag was down, quickly suppressing their opponents. The next objective was the dragon. With KT on dragon soul point, Nongshim's Jarvan secured the dragon and the team wiped out KT in the ensuing teamfight.

A series of intense skirmishes followed. At 36 minutes, KT successfully took Baron and caught K'Sante. Empowered by the Baron buff, KT pushed hard through the mid lane, secured a 2-for-3 trade, and continued their assault to destroy Nongshim's Nexus, taking the first game.

In the second set, Nongshim's 'Sponge' on Nocturne ganked the mid lane, forcing out 'Bdd's' Ahri's Flash before taking her down. Shortly after, KT's 'Cuzz' on Vi caught Nocturne in the mid lane, while Nongshim secured a kill on 'Effort's' Alistar in a 2-on-2 bottom lane skirmish.

KT won a series of small skirmishes, and Ahri scored a quadra kill at the dragon pit, racking up a massive lead. Nongshim immediately retaliated by picking off Ahri during the Rift Herald fight. However, in the next teamfight near the dragon, KT executed a fantastic display of aggro-ping-pong to win the fight decisively, building a gold lead of over 5,000 by the 19-minute mark. Nongshim remained resilient, however, and managed to find their own advantages depending on the positioning of the fights.

As the game continued in a chaotic fashion, Nongshim began to close the gold gap. However, KT wiped out Nongshim in a fight near Baron initiated by their Nocturne, secured the Baron, and widened the gap further than before. With the Baron buff, they launched a final, decisive push to win the game, extending their winning streak to three.