On the 14th, T1 defeated Gen.G 3-2 in the '2026 LoL Champions Korea (LCK)' Road to MSI 2nd Seed Decider held at the Wonju DB Promy Arena in Gangwon-do, securing the final ticket to the MSI. With this victory, T1 ended Gen.G's bid for a fourth consecutive MSI appearance and a three-peat, while simultaneously setting a record of their own by qualifying for the MSI for the fifth consecutive year.

The following is the full transcript of the T1 team's press conference.

Q. You won today's match and secured your spot in the MSI. Please share your thoughts.

'Doran': Since it was such an important match, we all prepared hard, and I'm happy with the result. I'm excited to head to the MSI and want to show everyone an even better performance.

'Oner': We didn't make it as the 1st seed, but I'm very relieved we qualified as the 2nd seed. I'm satisfied because I thought today's match was fun and featured a lot of great plays.

'Faker' = It wasn't an easy match today, but I'm satisfied that we finished with a good result and played a great series with my teammates.

'Phase': I think it's very meaningful that we refocused and overcame the challenge together. I'll do my best at the MSI.

'Keria' = I'm also happy because I think we all enjoyed the game together today.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon = I'm happy that the players performed so well and rewarded us with a victory.

Q. Since the 2024 season, you had lost every best-of-five series against Gen.G that went to five games. However, you won today. What do you think made the difference.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon = Honestly, I don't pay much attention to records, and I think the players feel the same way. I think we just won because our focus was better today.

'Faker' = In a best-of-five, I think the outcome is always decided by the variables of the day or slight differences in preparation. Gen.G is a very strong team, and we are also strong enough now, so I believe either side can win or lose at any time.

Q. In Game 1, when the opponent moved Jayce to the jungle, T1 moved Sion to the mid lane and picked Olaf for the top lane. I'd like to hear about the pick-ban process at that time.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon = We anticipated that the opponent's 'Canyon' could play Jayce jungle well, so we knew they might flex it. As for the mid Sion pick, we had prepared it during practice, and since 'Faker' has a very good understanding of Sion, we decided to go with it.

Q. There was a lot of criticism regarding your performance and pick-ban strategy in the match against Hanwha Life two days ago. How did you provide feedback during the break to enable today's victory?

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon = It was our first match after the patch changed, and things didn't go as well as we expected. After the match, we talked a lot with the players, and we all watched the Gen.G vs. KT match yesterday to prepare thoroughly.

Q. It seems the pick-ban battle was difficult as it went to five games. How did you view Gen.G's pick-ban style, and how did you plan the final Game 5 pick-ban.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon = By Game 5, many AD junglers were still available, and we thought combinations Gen.G frequently uses, like Renekton-Nidalee, might appear. We talked it over well with the players, and although 'Oner' hadn't played Naafiri much in tournaments, he had practiced it a lot, so we felt our composition turned out very well.

Q. (To 'Keria') You mentioned in the broadcast interview earlier that you were disappointed with your play today. What exactly were you disappointed about? (To 'Phase') You grew very well in Game 4, but what was difficult about closing out the game?

'Keria' = My performance didn't match the laning phase setup. I could have done better, but I was complacent, and I made quite a few skill errors during teamfights.

Q. (To 'Phase') You grew very well in Game 4, but you lost. What was difficult about closing out the game?

'Phase': In Game 4, I had grown enough to carry the game on my own, but it had been a while since I faced Gangplank, so I think losing the psychological battle with the powder kegs was a major factor.

Q. (To 'Keria') You were caught on camera saying "We won" after picking Neeko in the Game 5 pick-ban. However, Gen.G had better momentum early in Game 5. Why did you say that early on, and what were you thinking when things weren't going well.

'Keria' = I wasn't stating "We won" as a certainty. We usually discuss things in-game once the compositions are locked in, and since the team agreed our composition was good, I think I just said "Nice." We had a small mishap after a good start, but we still had plenty of room for error and had secured dragons well, so I felt quite comfortable playing.

Q. (To 'Keria') Watching the Road to MSI matches today, I felt the supporter tier list changed a lot. From Camille and Shen in Game 1 to Rell at the end, many tanks and bruisers appeared. What kind of tier adjustments were made over the past week that caused such a big meta shift.

'Keria' = Enchanter supporters were very strong during the regular season, but their value dropped significantly with the new patch. Even so, when we practiced, the matchups didn't seem to have changed, and I thought they were still fine. But when we actually used them in the tournament against Hanwha Life, they were terrible. So, we talked a lot yesterday and shifted our direction away from enchanter supporters today. Other teams like Hanwha Life seemed to grasp the meta quickly, while we were a bit late.

Q. (To Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon) A grueling schedule is ahead starting with the MSI. How do you plan to manage the players' condition?

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon = The players are already very good at managing their own condition. Now that today's match is over, they will take a break. Players preparing for the Asian Games won't be able to rest for long, but I hope they rest well in between and prepare thoroughly.

Q. (To 'Oner') I saw you wrote 'Did you have fun?' on your cheer board after winning today. It was a heart-pounding moment for the fans, but do you prefer winning smoothly or winning a fierce match while having fun yourself?

'Oner': Of course, I would love to win smoothly, but eSports is a stage where it's not strange for anyone to win, so I think close matches happen often. Today's match was fun enough to be memorable, and since we finished with a victory, I wrote that. I'm sure the fans were nervous, but since it ended in a win, I think everyone went home feeling good.

Q. (To 'Doran') Gen.G targeted the top side a lot today. How do you feel about winning despite being the focus of their pressure? Also, you picked Gragas top in Game 5 and didn't put a single point into your Q skill until level 10. Could you explain the intent behind that.

'Doran': It was a sensitive matchup top from Game 1, and I felt the opponent was paying a lot of attention to the top lane, so I made sure to stay more alert from the next game on. I had been looking for an opportunity to pick Gragas in Game 5 since the end of Game 3. It had been a while since I played him, so I made some mistakes, but the result was good. As for the skill tree, since it was a tank Gragas, I prioritized W and E over Q. Q consumes a lot of mana, so I leveled it up late to use it for the slow effect in the late game.

Q. (To 'Faker', 'Oner') In the Game 5 dragon fight, only Ryze and Naafiri were left, yet you continued the fight and managed to take down all the opponents.

'Faker' = At that moment, it was time to trade kills and stabilize the situation, and we were playing with the goal of keeping Neeko alive. In that process, the opposing team made a positioning error, which naturally led to a teamfight that we won.

'Oner': I think similarly. I felt we could capitalize on the opponent's mistake in that fight, so we aggressively engaged despite being at a numerical disadvantage. The result was great, and it was very thrilling.

Q. (To 'Faker') Looking at this Road to MSI Wonju series, Lissandra appeared in the mid lane more than before. While the Fearless pick-ban might be a factor, I'm curious why you chose Lissandra from a mid player's perspective.

'Faker' = In Fearless pick-ban, the mid lane requires a wider champion pool, so champions like Lissandra naturally appeared as we went into Games 3, 4, and 5. That's the background, but even looking at the champion itself, I think Lissandra has distinct strengths, which is why she appeared frequently in this series.

Q. (To Keria) In the set where you played Alistar, you sold your Ruby Crystal to buy an Oblivion Orb. I’m curious about the reasoning behind that decision and how it impacted the outcome of the game.

'Keria' = During teamfights, we realized the opponent wasn't dying as easily as we thought, so we discussed the need for a healing reduction item. None of my teammates had a champion that could build a healing reduction item within the next few minutes, and the situation was urgent, so I sold the Ruby Crystal and bought the Oblivion Orb. I think it was definitely noticeable in the actual teamfights.

Q. This is your 5th consecutive MSI appearance, but you haven't won in those five years. You must be desperate and thirsty for a title. Please share your resolve for the MSI.

'Doran': This is my third time going to the MSI, and since we unfortunately couldn't win last year, I will prepare more thoroughly this time to reward our fans with a good result.

'Oner': This is my fifth time going to the MSI, and it's a shame that I still don't have a trophy. Since we've seized this precious opportunity again, I'll prepare hard and make sure to bring the trophy home.

'Faker' = Like previous years, we are facing a very important opportunity. I want to seize this chance and show our fans that we can win the MSI.

'Phase': This is my first international tournament since transferring to T1, and I will make sure to return with good results.

'Keria' = I've been to the MSI often, but I've always felt disappointed because we couldn't win. Personally, looking back at past tournaments, I don't think there was a single match where I felt I played perfectly. I will make sure to show my best performance at this MSI.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon = We haven't won the MSI yet, but I want to prepare well so we can win this time and reward our fans.