World champion T1 defeated French powerhouse Carmine Kopf (KC) and advanced to the semifinals of the LoL World Championship (Worlds).
T1 defeated KC with a set score of 3-1 in the quarterfinals of the 2026 LoL World Championship held in Allen, Texas, USA on the 7th.
It was a multi-game rematch about four months after the EWC 2026 playoff semifinals held in Paris, France last July.
KC took the lead with Kim “Kanna” Chang-dong scoring a solo kill against Choi “Doran” Hyeon-jun in the top lane.
In the 15th minute, T1 started a fight with the owner's initiative in a confrontation in front of Dragon.
Sang-hyeok 'Faker' Lee overwhelmed his opponent by taking out Martin 'Yike' Sundelin, Kang Ye-hu 'Yehu', and even Kanna, but KC also got a lot of kills and fought back by accumulating up to 2 dragon buffs first.
The tight game tilted in favor of T1 around the 25th minute. In the battle that took place at the top of the jungle on the KC side, T1 surprised the dispersed KC formation and unilaterally achieved 3 kills, with Su-Hwan "Phase" Kim giving a double kill and even catching Yaike when the owner fell back.
T1, who also received the Baron Nashor buff, tightened KC's base by racking up kills in each phase, and won the first set in 35 minutes.
In the second set, the balance of the game collapsed due to the overwhelming difference in performance from the beginning of the game.
In the confrontation in front of Dragon that took place at the 3rd minute, Yaik, who had built up the Red and Blue buffs, jumped into T1's formation first, but Faker arrived and caught him, and T1 then eliminated Henrienever 'Kalist' and Allan 'Busio' Tsvalina, widening the gap.
T1, who gained the upper hand, widened the gold gap by scoring successive kills in the bottom and jungle.
In a one-sided match, T1 even received the fourth dragon buff and finished the second set in less than 30 minutes.
KC, who had been down twice in a row, avoided a head-on fight from the third set and planned the second half.
The first kill did not occur until the 19th minute. KC hit Doran with a crystal arrow fired from the mid lane by Carlist's Ash, and Yaike and Jehu chased down and caught him, taking a dramatic first point.
T1 also faced off tightly, with the duo of Phase and Ryu “Keria” Min-seok immediately eliminating Kanna.
KC fought back with concentration, accumulating the 4th dragon buff with a kill score of 2:2 around the 30th minute. Meanwhile, Phase's Jerry continued to rack up kills.
Elder dragon spawned around 35 minutes. KC managed to break through T1's block and take the Elder buff, and after cutting out T1's top and bottom duo, they attacked the main base with a 3:2 score.
The surviving Faker and Owner went on defense with the Nexus Tower, but Yehu cleared out the minions with Anivia and advanced faster than expected with Kanna at the forefront, breaking through the block and popping the Nexus.
T1, who retreated once due to an unexpected counterattack, played a close match with KC in the 4th set.
KC took the lead in the 6th minute when Kanna caught Doran, who was retreating with the tower in a desperate condition, with the help of Yaik.
The balance of victory suddenly tilted towards T1 around the 21st minute.
Immediately after receiving the dragon buff, T1 scored a triple kill by capturing Yaik through Phase and then killing Yehu and Busio.
Then, Faker and Doran recorded an all-kill by catching all of their fleeing opponents.
Phase showed an overwhelming presence in the ensuing battle, blocking KC's counterattack and putting a wedge in the game.
T1 advanced to the KC headquarters using the phase as its main weapon and the overwhelming difference in the weight class of the champion, ending the game in 35 minutes and winning a ticket to the semifinals.
T1 will face China's Bilibili Gaming (BLG) at the same venue on the 9th for the right to advance to the finals.
