Source: Riot Games

kt Rolster has joined the race for the top spot in the Legend Group after defeating both Hanwha Life Esports and T1—the first and second-place teams from the first two rounds of the regular season—to finish the first week of Round 3 with two consecutive wins. Dplus KIA, the EWC champions, also continued their momentum from the international stage by winning both of their matches in the first week of Round 3. In the Rise Group, Nongshim RedForce was the only team to record an undefeated week.

Riot Games, the organizer of the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK)—the Korean professional league for League of Legends (LoL)—announced that the first week of the 2026 LCK regular season Round 3, held from Wednesday, July 29, to Sunday, August 2, at LoL PARK in Jongno-gu, Seoul, and Hall 5 of KINTEX Exhibition Center 1 in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do, has concluded.

kt Rolster secured a 2-0 sweep against T1 in the 'Telecommunications Derby' on July 29 (Wed) and followed up with a 2-1 victory over Hanwha Life Esports after a hard-fought full set on August 2 (Sun).

In the final match of the first week of Round 3, kt Rolster and Hanwha Life Esports traded dominant victories. After kt Rolster took the first set with a kill score of 36-12, Hanwha Life Esports struck back to win the second set 19-7. In the tense third set, kt Rolster secured the win after catching Hanwha Life Esports jungler 'Kanavi' Seo Jin-hyeok near the Baron pit, with bottom laner 'Fenrir' Park Gang-jun delivering a standout performance to close out the intense series.

Having defeated the top two teams from the first two rounds, kt Rolster now sits at 15-5, tied with Hanwha Life Esports and T1. While their rankings are currently separated by set differential, the three-way tie at 15-5 signals an increasingly fierce battle for the top of the Legend Group.

Dplus KIA, fresh off their victory at the Esports World Cup (EWC), defeated MSI champions Hanwha Life Esports and then took down Gen.G at the '2026 LCK Team Roadshow: Gen.G Homestand - House of Gen.G,' winning both of their matches in the first week of Round 3.

Dplus KIA emerged victorious in the pride-filled clash between international champions. They defeated Hanwha Life Esports 2-1 in a full-set thriller on July 30 (Thu). Despite trailing after conceding the Baron in the final set, Dplus KIA regained momentum in a late-game team fight. A brilliant performance by 'Smash' Shin Geum-jae during the soul-point Dragon fight helped them overcome a 7k-gold deficit for a thrilling comeback win.

Carrying that momentum, Dplus KIA defeated Gen.G to succeed in their 'Northern Expedition' once again, winning 2-0 at the '2026 LCK Team Roadshow: Gen.G Homestand - House of Gen.G' held at KINTEX Hall 5 in Goyang on August 1 (Sat). Having also beaten Gen.G in the EWC semifinals, Dplus KIA has now proven they have the upper hand against their 'nemesis.'

Dplus KIA jungler 'Lucid' Choi Yong-hyuk reached a career milestone during the Gen.G match, becoming the 10th jungler in LCK history to record 2000 career assists, adding significance to the team's perfect 2-0 start to Round 3.

In the 2026 LCK Rounds 3 and 4, which are divided into Legend and Rise Groups, Nongshim RedForce—competing in the Rise Group—announced a strong start by winning both of their matches in the first week.

Nongshim RedForce swept Kiwoom DRX 2-0 on July 29 (Wed) to claim their first win of Round 3, then defeated BNK FEARX 2-1 on August 1 (Sat), becoming the only team in the Rise Group to go 2-0 in the first week. After dropping the first set, they rallied to win the next two, drawing attention with bold compositions including the new champion 'Roke' and the first-ever bottom-lane Aatrox in the LCK.

The victories also brought a significant personal milestone for Nongshim RedForce supporter 'Lehends' Son Si-u. During the match against BNK FEARX on August 1 (Sat), Son became the third supporter in LCK history to reach 500 career kills, following 'Keria' Ryu Min-seok and 'BeryL' Jo Geon-hee.

Meanwhile, DN Supers, who had been at the bottom of the Rise Group, fell to BNK FEARX in their first match of Round 3, extending their losing streak to 18 games. However, they finally tasted victory for the first time in four months by defeating Hanjin Brion 2-1 on August 2 (Sun).