LCK Teams Sweep Round 1 at Demacia Cup Global
James Whitfield
2 min read
The 2026 Demacia Cup Global Invitational opened on October 3 with a perfect start for the LCK region, as all three participating teams—KT Rolster, BNK FearX, and HANJIN BRION—won their opening matches to advance to Round 2 of the Winners' Bracket.
KT Rolster, positioned as one of the tournament's top contenders, defeated Shopify Rebellion in a match that remained controlled throughout the early and mid-game phases before accelerating decisively. The turning point came when top laner Lee "PerfecT" Seung-min's K'Sante secured a solo kill during a mid-lane skirmish that had initially favored the opposition. PerfecT's performance escalated from there, accumulating two additional kills in the same engagement and later demonstrating dominance by 1v3ing during a Rift Herald fight. KT Rolster capitalized on their momentum by positioning K'Sante and mid laner Gwak "Bdd" Bo-seong's Ryze to control side lanes, securing an unexpected Baron and eventually closing out the game with their resource advantage.
BNK FearX faced Team Vitality and started strongly by establishing priority across all three lanes. The team built an early gold lead through kills in the mid and bot lanes, though Team Vitality mounted a response through quick rotations and objective teamfights. BNK FearX maintained their advantage by executing consecutive plays on the side lanes, and when Team Vitality attempted a desperate Baron after eliminating support Kim "Kellin" Hyeong-gyu's Bard, BNK FearX's main force wiped them out in the counterattack. The Baron buff allowed BNK FearX to seal the victory.
HANJIN BRION pulled off a comeback against JD Gaming, a team that had controlled much of the game through strategic use of global ultimates on Pantheon and Twisted Fate combined with Yorick's Teleport for objective pressure. HANJIN BRION weathered the assault by stacking two early Dragon takes, eventually turning the fifth Dragon teamfight to their favor and completing the reversal.
The Round 2 Winners' Bracket matchups are now set. KT Rolster will face RED Canids Kalunga, HANJIN BRION will meet Team WE, and BNK FearX will clash with LGD Gaming. Winners' Bracket matches begin at 4:00 PM KST on October 4. Teams that reach two wins advance to the Knockout Stage, while losers move to Round 3. The Losers' Bracket continues on October 5 at the same time, with Natus Vincere facing FlyQuest, GAM Esports playing Team Vitality, and Shopify Rebellion taking on JD Gaming.
